Realism...

Immortal113 · Mar 22, 2005

Hello, all.

New to the site, so be merciful.
Also a bit of a film-making newb...that is to say, the film I'm currently making doesn't really even count as "independant"...it's more akin to "family video with a script". Well, maybe that's an exaggeration, but listening to you guys talk about all that technical stuff makes it feel like I am. Anyway, my 'director' asked me to register and ask all of you about something we're trying to do, because we want it to be at least vaguely realistic, even considering the quality of the film. I know it might sound a little cheesy, but bear with me...

We're filming a horror movie, and, well, a pregnant woman dies. But, you guessed it, the baby miraculously survives. Now...as it is, it might be a little hard to swallow, so we really don't want to make it worse by making her die in a way that would make that impossible. So, supposing she were stabbed, is there a certain area that allows for the baby to survive but her to, well, not? Upper chest area was suggested, but I know nothing about this sort of thing and I'd really like a second opinion, and a third fourth and fifth would be nice as well.

I dunno if this is something anybody here would know...but an outsider's perspective is always useful.

Zensteve · Mar 22, 2005

Hello, Mr Immortal

No apologies for being new, or any of that nonsense. The boards are here for all filmmakers, regardless of level of experience. It's what makes IndieTalk so great, having that wide variety from first-timer to industry-level. (Noone bites, either)

_______

supposing she were stabbed, is there a certain area that allows for the baby to survive but her to, well, not?

Anywhere, from the head down to the bottom of the sternum... front or rear.

The throat/neck has the jugular attached, which means death if slashed. However, that might be difficult to film effectively (and safely) if using family volunteers.

Upper chest stabs can be good & messy... repeated stabs (as the chestplate can deflect direct organ penetration). That can easily be done with angled shots. Boardmember DirectorX had some great examples of how to do this in the video in this thread.

There's not always a need to be so messy, though.

A single shiv to the back has been seen in many a flick, when the perpetrator has snuck up from the rear. It's an implied shot, with a reaction of bug-eyed disbelief on the person being killed... slumping over with a plastic knife attached being revealed to the camera.

Not all horror needs to be particularly bloody or smacking of realism, I might add. Sometimes it's what you don't see, that is really frightening.

Don't forget that after the death of the woman, there isn't that long 'til the unborn child needs to be released from the womb. Within minutes, or it dies too.

This sounds like a messy little film you have planned

lux · Mar 22, 2005

dare i say you cut the baby out of her womb charlie manson style? Might want mum to run you some coffees while you filming this scene......

614productions · Mar 22, 2005

what if the mother was decapitated in her 8 month? Lots of blood. Great opportunity for a faux head to roll and the baby could possibly still be alive for a few after the shock.

Immortal113 · Mar 22, 2005

Wow! This is more than I expected to find in the way of advice...I didn't think we'd find this kind of information when we started looking for online message boards. Thanks alot, guys. I really appreciate the help! If anyone else has thoughts, I'd be very (very) happy to hear them as well. Again, thanks guys. I'll have to come back here quite a bit during this movie, I can already tell. =D

And in response to Zensteve, we're actually going for the "what's frightening is what you don't see" method in filming this movie, as you mentioned. So although there are bloody moments in the movie, we're concentrating more on other things than the actual death and dieing stuff.

Disciple · Mar 22, 2005

I too am a newb, but what if your prego lady died slowly... like she was paralyzed by being stabed in the invertibae (sp?) and slowly died hidden away from the public... Dude you could get some serious creapiness if the idea is the baby comes back to exact revenge, so while mommy dearest was dying she whispered to her unborn child to revenge her. Just a thought.

DirectorX · Mar 23, 2005

Man...you're all sick! :hmm:

Just joking!

I'm still laughing at the fact that Steve mentioned that other post of mine with that video. The links on that post no longer work, but since Steve mentioned it, I uploaded that video to my site >> http://www.flaviuman.com/oldskool/TURNER_CUT.mov (QuickTime 21MB).

Immortal113 · Mar 23, 2005

Hehehe, I like that a lot.

For some reason I didn't have any sound when I watched it, but nice use of angles to cover up any real contact with the victims. Was that just a little experimental thing, or was it part of something else?

Oh, and Disciple, your ideas are very interesting. I'll have to tell my director. He's always up for far-fetched plot twists and foreshadowing.

PaCKT · May 30, 2005

I can just envision a murder with the camera angles changing very quickly, and in one quick shot instead of blood spurting out like it is in every other fluid is bursting out in one shot (her water is broken). Once the murder is over, a shot of the mother's dead lifeless face and complete silence for about 45 seconds...and then a blood curdling cry. Of course the babies cry, not the mommies.

spinner · May 30, 2005

...whoa,...you guys are psychos! :scared:

My kind of people..

--spinner