Film Production - Settings

Lunch hall - This is a social area that people will recognise as from in a school. These places are known for being busy and places where people gossip - there's a contrast with this idea when Holly and Amy are talking in the film trailer, alone at the table. This shows that this scene must take place during a lesson as there's nobody else around and connotes that Holly was desperate to tell her friend what's been happening.

Lockers - This scene connotes that the film is mainly set in a school and also suggests that the characters are of an age to be at school/sixth form. Like lunch halls, they also known for places of gossiping - as it's the only time people are separated from their cliques at school.

Class room - We decided to not use a typical class room as the students are older and would spend more time in computer suites.

Trees - These are typical of the horror genre and could be considered clichéd. We weren't sure if we would include this setting for that reason but decided that the trees added to the eerie vibe that we were trying to achieve. The trees provide a lot of shadows - which fits with the film title and add a sense of mystery - and we decided to film the shots near the trees when it was getting late so that the low sun gave us more shadows.

Bushes - There's a gap in the bushes that we decided could be used to hide something - which is why we used this as where Amy's body is found.

Playground - In our trailer, there's juxtaposition of friends having fun at park and swing by itself in the dark. This suggests there's something supernatural making the swing move but could also be seen as the girls disappearing suddenly from the park, or someone who has been following them.

Holly's house - This setting was used to add realism as teenagers tend to just spend time at home when they're not at school - which is why we made sure that these two settings were the most featured in our film. The familiar setting also adds to the idea of Holly not being safe in her own house and shows that the 'spirit' is following her not just at school.

The outside of the house is shown but the audience only see someone unknown pressing the doorbell in the trailer. The shadow that goes over the doorbell emphasises our focus of being 'in the shadows' but also connotes that whoever is there has bad intentions.

There are also scenes set in Holly's room to add a sense of verisimilitude. It's a typical teenage girl's room and would be where Holly feels comfortable - we contrasted with this by showing Holly having nightmares and waking up suddenly to emphasise to the audience that there's nowhere where she's safe.