Conventions in Horror Films

Conventions are the expected features (in terms of plot, character, etc.) that can be found in a particular film. Below are the standard conventions that can be found in teen horror films.

Creating the Threat

Immediate Death - The Gallows

Someone is Killed in the First Five Minutes - this is usually an unnamed or minor character, and is used to establish the threat of the antagonist

X Years Before / Later - flashbacks or flash forwards are used to transition into the main plot after foreshadowing the audience

Building the Danger...

Secluded Location - the protagonists are isolated, and given no means of finding help when the 

antagonist finds them

Secluded Location - Cabin in the Woods

Power is Cut - the characters are left with no electricity, which usually acts as an initial sign of danger; this links in with the No Signal or, for older films, the Phone Line Cut tropes to cut off the characters from any form of communication

Bad Weather - the use of pathetic fallacy to create an inference of danger; usually comes in the form of a nighttime setting, rain or a storm 

The Fake Scare - tension is built, leading to an anticlimactic jumpscare; sometimes it is followed by a real scare 

A Series of Unfortunate Decisions

Characters Forget About Threat - they disregard/are oblivious to danger

Warning Goes Unheeded - obvious signs of danger (eg. DO NOT ENTER signs or local legends) ignored

The Short Cut - a shorter route is taken to the destination, leading the characters into danger 

Someone Investigates a Strange Noise - goes against all logic, and involves a character pursuing a noise that the audience know leads to a threat

Victim Cowering in Front of Window / Door - allows for dramatic shots (eg. a shattering window), but is not a sensible decision for the character

Someone Runs Upstairs Instead of Outside - does what it says on the tin, and is always an irrational decision

Victim Inexplicably Falls Over - gives the antagonist an opportunity to catch up with the protagonist, and builds tension

Vehicle Won't Start - sometimes linked with the Forgot The Keys trope; the protagonist cannot start their vehicle, which is the only fast means of escape from the protagonist 


Above is the opening scene of the slasher film Friday the 13th. I watched through this scene and identified some of the conventions that were used, as well as the effects they had on me as an audience member.

- Bad weather; the night-time setting immediately set the tone for the opening. It felt very ominous, as it would be difficult to see any threats hiding in the darkness, which the point of view shots (see below) and the music cues seemed to hint at.

- Isolated setting; with the impending danger that was being built up, the fact that the characters were so far away from any help made the scene more intense and scary. They were oblivious to the danger, but as an audience member, I was not; watching the killer creep up on them when they had no idea of what was happening built tension, as I was unable to control or stop the death that I knew was coming.

- Death in first five minutes; this helped to establish how dangerous the killer was, and therefore made the threat in the rest of the movie more real.

- Killer's point of view shot; as mentioned before, this gave me a sense of being completely immobile. I could see where the killer was going, and I could infer by the music cues that they were going to be dangerous, but I had no control over the situation, making me feel scared and powerless.