Psychological Horrors - Codes and Conventions

From my horror genre research below, I have decided to use psychological for my film. Before I can storyboard my film opening, I need to bare in mind the basics of Psychological horrors. This will help when I want to indicate to the audience what to expect from my film. Here are the codes and conventions of a psychological horror

Characters

• Young adult or a child (usually female)
• Mentally unstable
• Emotionally unstable
• Dark, gothic in looks
• A detective (or other figure of authority)
• An unsuspecting partener or friend

Settings

• Mental Hospitals
• Dark, gloomy, abandoned places
• Big, isolated domains

Props

• Old photographs/teddies/dolls/anything else of sentimental value to a character
• A weapon of some sort (ranging from proper weapons such as a knife to inanimate objects such as a metal pole)
• A source of research such as a laptop, book, files.

Storylines

• A story full of suspense, twists and deaths/mental torment.
• One person either mentally ill or the victim of brutal abuse from a stalker/family member/friend.
• Not always, but a lot of times it ends in the main character either dying or ending up in hospital/mental asylem.
• There is usually a strong sense of confusion and mystery inflicted upon the main character and thus, the audience.
• There is almost never a happy ending.
• The horror usually is ceased through the main character working out what is happening and stopping it. However, sometimes the horror is not stopped, either implying that you cannot stop the horror/fear or that there will be a sequel.
• Ones closest to the main character are usually killed off

Sound

• Very little dialogue throughout most of the film.
• More dialogue when the main character is trying to reason/workout what's happening to them, showing panic and desperation.
• Tense, low music to build suspense, which usually builds up louder when a scary scene is coming up.
• Sometimes there will be a very quiet drum beat in the background, mimicking the heart rate of the character and possibly the audience's.
• A lot of silent scenes giving the film an eerie effect.

Cinematography and editing

• Fast pace editing for the most part to emphasise confusion and action. However, slow paced editing is used at tense moments to build suspense.
• Characters will have flashbacks from time to time, each time they get closer to working out why these acts of horror are happening.
• Sometimes, not very linear, showing the result of horrible events at the beginning to spark curiosity and fear. It would usually show the character after being through an ordeal (e.g. in a mental hospital, alone and lost in a forest, in a hospital bed, etc).
• Mostly filmed in dark places such as night-time, dark houses, etc.
• The camera nearly always focuses and follows the main character

 From researching the codes and conventions of Psychological horrors, I know what I must include in my opening to give the needed effect of suspense and fear on my audience. A non-linear approach (opening on the after-effects if events) will create the needed 'play' on emotions towards the character and her situation. I also know that using a young, seemingly vulnerable female lead will create fear for the character.

With these in mind, I can effectively make my film into a clear psychological horror.