Name Research

We need to come up with a name for our film opening, so I decided to research different names other films have used and the meaning behind them. This will help us decide on possible names for our opening which we can eventually add to our opening.

Scream:
This name is very simple, it is showing the outcome of the scare in the film, making people expect a frightening experience and could suggest that they will scream themselves. This simplicity works well for the name of a film because no clues are given into the actual storyline, making the viewer want to watch the film and find out what is so scary.

Sinister:
This name is also very simple, however it is not showing the outcome of the scare, but the source of the scare. It gives the impression that something - it is not revealed what - is going to be the cause of a series of sinister events. There are no clues to the character's reactions or emotions, and we do not know  how the story will turn out. This kind of name is good as it keeps the viewer guessing and wanting more, encouraging them to watch the film.

The Last House on the Left:
This name is the longest name I looked at, it is telling the viewer immediately what the source of the scare is, and this reveals a lot about what could happen in the film. By picking a name like this, it is important that we consider if a name like this would be good for our opening, because we will not be revealing much of the plot, so a name like this focusing on a particular point could be irrelevant and confuse the viewers. However, when looking at this for film names in general, it points out to us that a name like this allows the viewer to look out for certain clues, to help them figure out what is going to happen in the film and storyline. It allows them to stay engaged with the film and find out if what they think is going to happen actually happens.

The Ring:
The Ring is another very short name for a film, and is telling us the source of the scare straight away. This means that viewers know what to look out for when watching the film, and can predict what may happen in the story line  It allows viewers again look out for this source and determine when the most scary parts of the film may occur. However, this name could actually be a metaphor for a series of events in the film, misleading people into looking for a 'ring' but shocking them with another idea which happens over and over again. This will be good for a film name as the viewers will be surprised and keep watching to find out more.

Shrooms:
This name is telling us the source of the scare, and allows the viewer to identify what is going to happen in the film. The name fits well with the film because as soon as the characters take 'shrooms' the viewer immediately expects things to go wrong and expect the film to become scary or jumpy. 

American Psycho:
This is another name which gives away the source of the scare. It works quite well because the viewer not only finds out where the film's protagonist is from, but also a trait from their personality. This idea could be incorporated into our film name, however, we would need to come up with an effective and relevant name for our protagonist, because it may not make it very clear to the viewer at all.

Stay:
This name is really effective because it doesn't give very much away about the actual story line, but the action, stay, gives lots of different ideas to the viewer, and shows the outcome of the scare in the horror. This could suggest something happens, causing the characters to make a decision to fight back, or as the title suggests, stay back. We could think about a name similar to this concept, however it may not work very effectively with how much of the story line we actually reveal.

Apartment 143:
This again is another name revealing the source of the scare to the viewers straight away. This name immediately gives away the location of the film and shows that it is most likely in a city location. This idea could be implemented in our opening name - something suggesting the idea of a forest location to the viewer. The number '43' also gives the viewer something to look out for, and will make them more scared when 'apartment 43' is finally revealed to them. It increases suspense and allows them to think about what they suspect may happen in the storyline.

The Orphan:
This is once more another source of the scare film name. The idea of a child being involved should make the audience feel sympathy, but by calling the film this, it creates a sinister atmosphere and causes the audience to have doubts in the orphan's identity. We could use this in our film opening, because we have a demonic female character, so by looking at her character closely, we may be able to mimic this idea for our own title.

Funny Games:
'Funny Games' is telling is the source of the scare straight away. It is quite vague, and the audience can't really get anything from just the title. However, it could give them the idea that perhaps something which is meant to be a light hearted joke or some fun goes terribly wrong. This means the audience will expect something to happen to the characters as they try to figure out the plot line themselves. We could use a similar concept to keep the audience guessing and build the suspense in our opening.

Paranormal Activity:
This is the final film name I decided to look at, and it is again revealing the source of the scare to the audience. It gives them an idea of what is going to happen, and links to the genre, but doesn't give too much away.

Our ideas:
When looking at the different names I have come up with a few names. Over the next few weeks my group will look through them and decided which one fits the finished & edited film opening.

- Beyond
I came up with this because the dead sister comes back from beyond the grave, this fits with our location too.
- The Sisters
This was chosen because the opening focuses on two sisters, and the rest of the film could be focusing on how they grew up together or how they go against each other.
- Deadly
Because the sister came back from the dead and is now a demonic creature, it could highlight how she is deadly and threatening to other characters, especially her first victim her child.
- Mourning
This isn't the best name, however it would work for the opening, but not necessarily the beat option for a name for the whole film.
- Rivalry
This could suggest that there is more to the sister's previous relationship than first meets the eye. And this could suggest the deadly intentions of one of the sisters.
- Child's Play
This is my personal favourite, as it would make the opening act like a current time piece of footage, and let the rest of the film consist of flashbacks and what happens next, revealing why and how the sisters have ended up like this.