SIKE, Scifi who?

Pardon? Science Fiction? I don't know her..

We have scrapped the sci-fi idea and have started thinking of a story that could fit into a dark fantasy type of genre. According to Filmsite.org, "Fantasy films often have an element of magic, myth, wonder, escapism, and the extraordinary." Many fantasy films include mythical beings and magical stories. It is also common to see fantasy overlap with genres such as horror. In these films, the supernatural forces are mostly intended to scare viewers. Dark fantasy is a sub-genre that portrays the fantastical elements of a story as evil and usually in a grim like manner. According to Tvtropes.org, in the dark fantasy genre "Magic Is Evil and often The Corruption..There is a good chance it's directly obtained through a Deal with the Devil, powered by Blood Magic or involves Human Sacrifice..Sometimes magic is kept on a low level, hard to exploit or of highly limited usefulness. This way the setting avoids the fancifulness of a Standard Fantasy Setting ..." This genre also sometimes tells the story from the perspective of the "monster" or presents the story of the mythical being in a way that audiences will sympathize with. We are planning to add similar characteristics to our story. Some dark fantasy films include Edward Scissor Hands(1990), and Maleficent (2014), Crimson Peak (2015), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), and possibly all other Guillermo Del Toro's films. 

Crimson Peak (2015)

Pans Labyrinth (2006)

Fantasy films rank number four in top-grossing creative film types according to Thenumbers.com. This helps us believe that the dark fantasy genre is a good choice for our intro. Most fantasy films target young adult audiences. Horror films also usually attract a younger audience as well. We plan to use a young adult female character as the main role in our story to appeal to this age group. We will also use costuming and other plot characteristics to target younger audiences.

Thenumbers.com

We plan to center our story around a witch who is mostly portrayed as evil in the beginning of our story. So far we have the story set in the 1950s/60s. The main character is a powerful but conflicted bruja who is fueled by Blood Magic. Her motive will most likely be based on her past. She will have had a witch lover that was murdered by her husband on account of him finding out what she was. Our inspiration for the bruja's look include I Married a Witch (1942) and Black Sunday (1960).

I Married a Witch (1942)

Black Sunday (1960)

So far my vision for our film intro includes the present day 1950s/60s setting and our witch entering her home. The shots will not focus on her face at first but her attire and actions. The audience will be led to believe it is just an average house wife coming home to her husband with a "Honey, I'm home" kind of feel. But after putting down her groceries and gathering other questionable tools she approaches a door. Once she walks through the mood will shift from lighthearted to eerie. The lighting will become darker and more dramatic. The room will have a man tied up in a chair next to a big pot. She uses this man as a source for the ingredients of a potion she is concocting. The rest of the details are still being discussed.

We want to use the music as a contract to the visuals of the witch's violent acts toward her hostage. We plan to use an old song like Jeepers Creepers by Paul Whiteman's Swing Wing. This scene will be  similar to one featured in Insidious (2010) where Tiptoe Through the Tulips by Tiny Tim is juxtaposed with the evil demon sharpening his knives.

                           Tiptoe Through the Tulips- Insidious (2010)



"Dark Fantasy." TV Tropes. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DarkFantasy#>.

Daza, Juan Luis. Crimson Peak. Digital image. Hotdog. N.p., 23 Oct. 2015. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://www.hotdog.hu/mozifilmmagazin/filmtartalmak-elemzesek/biborhegy>.

DianaCDT. Black Sunday (1960). Digital image. Listal. Listal, 19 Oct. 2012. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://www.listal.com/list/top-10-greatest-witch-movies>.

Dirks, Tim. "Fantasy Films." Filmsite. American Movie Classics Company LLC., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://www.filmsite.org/fantasyfilms.html>.

"Domestic Movie Theatrical Market Summary 1995 to 2017." The Numbers. Nash Information Services, LLC., 2017. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://www.the-numbers.com/market/>.

Rocha, Pedro. I Married a Witch (1942). Digital image. Tumblr. N.p., 27 Oct. 2016. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://antipahtico.tumblr.com/post/152382389536/veronica-lake-i-married-a-witch-1942>.

Snider, Eric D. Pan's Labyrinth. Digital image. Mental Floss. Mental Floss Inc., 29 Dec. 2016. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <http://mentalfloss.com/article/79882/14-fantastical-facts-about-pans-labyrinth>.

Ward, Beck. "FINAL GENRE - Gothic/ Horror Fantasy." Prezi. Prezi Inc., 21 Nov. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2017. <https://prezi.com/fx2abgvrrpkd/final-genre-gothic-horror-fantasy/>.