Reasearch
Vampires
For my research into vampires, I first looked at Gothic, particularly gothic horror which had one of the most infamous vampire known to man: Dracula.
The main definition of Gothic of the 19th century (revived during the 18th century) which is primarily Gothic fiction/literature. The largest sub-genre in Gothic fiction is Gothic horror which combines fiction, horror and Romanticism. The origin of this genre is from the English author Horace Walpole. His novel which is of this genre is The Castle of Otranto written in 1764. It contained the subtitle "A Gothic Story". Gothic fiction were often pleasing with it's terror, melodramatic and sometimes even parodies. These were common features in Walpole's Gothic style. The origin of Gothic was mainly in England during the 18th century. During the 19th century, writers such as Mary Shelley (Frankenstein) and Edgar Allen Poe had much success with the Gothic genre. One of the most famous novels in the gothic genre hails from the Victorian period by Bram Stoker, Dracula. The use of the name Gothic is due to it referring the medieval style gothic revival architecture of the buildings in which most of the Gothic stories would have their setting. Bram stokers Dracula spawned a genre that is still popular now in the 21st century.
One of the big influences from the Gothic theme is the Gothic horror genre, especially the creatures within those stories: Vampires, werewolves, undead etc.
Vampires are mythical beings who survive by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, the most common being in the form of blood. In folklore, undead vampires return to cause mischief to the neighbourhoods they once inhabited. They're described as wearing shrouds and often described as bloated and of dark countenance. In comparison to the 1800's to modern description of vampire which is pale and gaunt. Vampiric like entities have been recorded throughout history and in most cultures. The actual term vampire was not popular until 1700's due to a large vampire superstition from vampire legends from the Balkans. This led to mass hysteria and people genuinely believing vampires were real causing them to stake corpses accused of vampirism.
In the modern day, vampires are now recognised as being fictitious due to the explanation of science and the decomposition of bodies although some cultures still believe vampires exist.
Vampires are often described to have varying and different traits, in European folklore vampires were usually reported as bloated in appearance, and ruddy, purplish, or dark in colour which was mainly due to the recent drinking of blood. Blood is usually seeping from the mouth or nose. It would be clad in the line shroud it was buried in and it's teeth, hair and nails may have grown. Surprisingly fangs were not common. In Norse mythology, the Old Norse draugr is a medieval example of undead creature with vampire like abilites.
In Asia they had different types of vampires all with very different traits: in Japan they have the Kistune which is a spiritual vampire. In Malaysia, the Penanggalan was a beautiful woman who obtained beauty via black magic. She is able to detach her fanged head which flies look for blood from pregnant women. The ponianak in Malaysia is a woman who died during childbirth and became undead seeking revenge. She sucks the blood of children using a hole in the back of her kneck. In the Phillipines there are two main types: Mandurugo and Visayan Manananggal. The mandurugo is an attractive girl by day and develops wings and a long hollow thread like tongue at night which is used to suck the blood from a sleeping victim. The manananggal is an older beautiful woman who is capable of separating her upper torso to fly efficiently at night with large bat wings. They prey on the foetuses on sleeping pregnant women. They also enjoy entrails and phlegm of the poorly. The legend of detachable vampires takes it origins in these South East Asian countries.
One of the most famous types of Asian vampire is the Jiangshi or the Chinese Vampire. They are reanimated corpses which hop around (due to rigor mortis) and kill any living creatures by absorbing their qi (life essence). They are created when a person fails to leave the body. Jiangshi unlike most vampires are mindless with no independent thought. They have greenish white furry skin due to fungus or mould growing on the corpses. Jiangshi are infamous due to their appearance in literature and films in Hong Kong during the 1980's and 1990's, Mr Vampire being one of them incorporating slapstick humour, comedy and martial arts.
In modern fiction, vampires are usually depicted as a suave charismatic villian. There are even people who choose to live a "Vampire lifestyle" which is a sort of alternative subculture. A lot of it has been with mixed with neo Gothic aesthetics. Although in the modern day, disbelief in vampires are high, reportings are still sighted and societies are formed for social reasons. In 2003, allegations of vampire attacks swept through Malawi and people were stoned to death as they believed the government were colluding with vampires. Cases such as the chupacabra of Mexico and Puerto Rico have said to seen a creature that sucks the blood of domesticated animals.
The traits of vampires can vary depending on film/novel/television show. Many traits are similar whilst others can lack certain traits or weaknesses.
Here are the seven traits that can vary in a vampire:
Here are the eleven weaknesses that can vary in a vampire:
Here are the ten different traits the can vary in a vampire:
Here are the seven reproduction and feeding traits of vampires that can vary:
Another trait is whether vampires are part of an order or society and whether humans know about their existence.
As well as combining my two previous ideas from previous projects (one on a vampire and one on dragons), I also decided it would be a great idea combining the two of my favourite genres together, horror and fantasy. As vampires I already seen within the fantasy genre I thought it would be perfect to combine them.
Dragons
An Western Dragon. A Chinese Dragon.
I explored the motivation, behaviour, psychology and capabilities of the dragon, brain storming and writing down ideas/analysis of the dragon.
Putting it a futuristic setting reminded me of 'modern' vampire films such as Daybreakers, Night Watch, Day Watch and Blade which really influenced me with their dark and urban feel. Another influence would be the Underworld film series where although the vampires are antagonised, the main protagonist is a vampire likewise with the film blade. This gives the audience a sense of sympathy with the character, or view them more as a anti-hero. In the fourth Underworld film where the human government have killed of almost all vampires and believe that lycans (werwolves to be extinct) and I wanted to represent that kind of situation in a shorter story so that the audience feels some sympathy with the vampires. In the film the vampire declares about how the vampires came back to take the authorative role in society and the film Daybreakers influenced me as in that film, the vampires are the species that dominate the world and are in charge of the governments whilst humans are the ones who are hunted for farming and harvesting. The films Day Watch and Night Watch are urban fantasy that has vampires and are also considered modern Gothic horror films and these influenced me with the 'modern vampire' idea as my vampire is a day walker.
When filming certain scenes, especially fights or dramatic scenes I used a GoPro Hero 2 head camera which I derived from a first person point of view perspective which is particularly common in horror films such as the film Blair Witch Project, Troll Hunter, Cloverfield and Halloween where it is either to be show in a 'found footage' manner or to immerse the audience by showing them the 'killer/antagonists' point of view.
Slow motion was used in the fight scenes which I took influence from the films 300, Sherlock Holmes movies and Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter which really emphasised the dramatic movement of the moves during the fight sequences and build up suspension for the audience. These influences show how the bigger picture has helped me approach my project,
Looking at the powers of the characters I decided I need to show their abilities off using after effects. One of the main character, a female human/dragon hybrid who covertly tracks and stalks the main protagonist of the film. She has vampirism far back in her ancestral bloodline, she can combine still utilise the blood magic of the vampires even though she is a dragon, human/elf hybrid. I decided to show the magic she uses by using red to represent blood and the dark character that she is. Red is also a stand out colour. I was influenced by Scarlet Witch in the Avengers: Age of Ultron Movie. Her powers include telekinesis and telepathy. The red energy of her powers matches the dark red colour schemes of her clothes.
The glow of the vampire's eyes are influenced by the vampires in the game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim: Dawnguard. What appealed to me about their vampires was there eye glow and that if your character does not feed, over days, the vampirism grows stronger and the eyes glow brighter. I was also influenced by the film Daybreakers as their vampires had yellow eyes but only in the iris so I decided to add the effect only onto the iris of the eyes but retain the yellow glow.
Bibliography (Harvard Format)
30 Days of Night (2007), film, directed by David Slade. United States. 109 minutes.
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. United States. 105 minutes
Blade II (2002), film, directed by Guillermo del Toro. United States. 116 minutes.
Blade (1998), film, directed by Stephen Norrington. United States. 120 minutes.
Blade: Trinity (2004), film, directed by David S. Goyer. United States. 113 minutes.
Bram Stoker. (1897), Dracula, London: Archibald Constable and Company (UK). 400.
Byzantium (2013), film, directed by Neil Jordan. Ireland, United Kingdom, United States. 118 minutes.
Castlevania (1986), game [Family Computer Disk System]. Konami: Tokyo, Japan.
Day Watch (2006), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. Russia, Uzbek. 131 minutes.
Daybreakers (2009), film, directed by Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig. Australia, United States. 98 minutes.
Dragonheart ()1996), film, directed by Rob Cohen. United States, Slovakia, United Kingdom. 103 minutes.
Dungeons & Dragons (2000), film directed by Courtney Solomon. United States, Czech Republic. 107 minutes.
Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God (2005). 105 minutes.
D-War (디워) (2007), film, directed by Shim Hyung-rae. South Korea. 90 minutes.
From Dusk till Dawn (1996), film, directed by Robert Rodriguez. United States. 108 minutes.
John Carpenter's Vampires (1998), film directed by John Carpenter. United States 108 minutes.
Mr Vampire (1985), film, directed by Ricky Lau. Hong King. 96 minutes.
Night Watch (2004), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. Russia. 114 minutes.
Reign of Fire (2002), film, directed by Rob Bowman. United Kingdom, United States. 102 minutes.
Supernatural (2005), television series, created by Erik Kripke. United States, Canada. 38-45 minutes.
The Elder Scrolls V: Dawnguard DLC (2012), game, Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Elder Scrolls V: Dragonborn DLC (2013), game, Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011), game [Xbox 360], Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), film, directed by Peter Jackson. New Zealand, United States. 169 minutes.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013), film, directed by Peter Jackson. New Zealand, United States. 161 minutes.
Underworld: Evolution (2006), film, directed by Len Wiseman. United States. 106 minutes.
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009), film, directed by Patrick Tatopoulos. United States. 92 minutes.
Van Helsing (2004), film, directed by Stephen Sommers. United States. 131 minutes.
The bibliography shows the sources and references I have used for inspiration and research for my work.
Timeline of Research:
Dipity timeline:
This timeline below shows films, tv shows, games and books that I have seen and researched on. Using the dipity timeline I can easily display what I've researched and watched (alongside doing the bibliography). It's a format that allows me to show key historical dates and events of the historical context of my research such as when certain book, films, tv shows or games were released or published.
Vampires
For my research into vampires, I first looked at Gothic, particularly gothic horror which had one of the most infamous vampire known to man: Dracula.
The main definition of Gothic of the 19th century (revived during the 18th century) which is primarily Gothic fiction/literature. The largest sub-genre in Gothic fiction is Gothic horror which combines fiction, horror and Romanticism. The origin of this genre is from the English author Horace Walpole. His novel which is of this genre is The Castle of Otranto written in 1764. It contained the subtitle "A Gothic Story". Gothic fiction were often pleasing with it's terror, melodramatic and sometimes even parodies. These were common features in Walpole's Gothic style. The origin of Gothic was mainly in England during the 18th century. During the 19th century, writers such as Mary Shelley (Frankenstein) and Edgar Allen Poe had much success with the Gothic genre. One of the most famous novels in the gothic genre hails from the Victorian period by Bram Stoker, Dracula. The use of the name Gothic is due to it referring the medieval style gothic revival architecture of the buildings in which most of the Gothic stories would have their setting. Bram stokers Dracula spawned a genre that is still popular now in the 21st century.
One of the big influences from the Gothic theme is the Gothic horror genre, especially the creatures within those stories: Vampires, werewolves, undead etc.
Vampires are mythical beings who survive by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, the most common being in the form of blood. In folklore, undead vampires return to cause mischief to the neighbourhoods they once inhabited. They're described as wearing shrouds and often described as bloated and of dark countenance. In comparison to the 1800's to modern description of vampire which is pale and gaunt. Vampiric like entities have been recorded throughout history and in most cultures. The actual term vampire was not popular until 1700's due to a large vampire superstition from vampire legends from the Balkans. This led to mass hysteria and people genuinely believing vampires were real causing them to stake corpses accused of vampirism.
In the modern day, vampires are now recognised as being fictitious due to the explanation of science and the decomposition of bodies although some cultures still believe vampires exist.
Vampires are often described to have varying and different traits, in European folklore vampires were usually reported as bloated in appearance, and ruddy, purplish, or dark in colour which was mainly due to the recent drinking of blood. Blood is usually seeping from the mouth or nose. It would be clad in the line shroud it was buried in and it's teeth, hair and nails may have grown. Surprisingly fangs were not common. In Norse mythology, the Old Norse draugr is a medieval example of undead creature with vampire like abilites.
In Asia they had different types of vampires all with very different traits: in Japan they have the Kistune which is a spiritual vampire. In Malaysia, the Penanggalan was a beautiful woman who obtained beauty via black magic. She is able to detach her fanged head which flies look for blood from pregnant women. The ponianak in Malaysia is a woman who died during childbirth and became undead seeking revenge. She sucks the blood of children using a hole in the back of her kneck. In the Phillipines there are two main types: Mandurugo and Visayan Manananggal. The mandurugo is an attractive girl by day and develops wings and a long hollow thread like tongue at night which is used to suck the blood from a sleeping victim. The manananggal is an older beautiful woman who is capable of separating her upper torso to fly efficiently at night with large bat wings. They prey on the foetuses on sleeping pregnant women. They also enjoy entrails and phlegm of the poorly. The legend of detachable vampires takes it origins in these South East Asian countries.
One of the most famous types of Asian vampire is the Jiangshi or the Chinese Vampire. They are reanimated corpses which hop around (due to rigor mortis) and kill any living creatures by absorbing their qi (life essence). They are created when a person fails to leave the body. Jiangshi unlike most vampires are mindless with no independent thought. They have greenish white furry skin due to fungus or mould growing on the corpses. Jiangshi are infamous due to their appearance in literature and films in Hong Kong during the 1980's and 1990's, Mr Vampire being one of them incorporating slapstick humour, comedy and martial arts.
In modern fiction, vampires are usually depicted as a suave charismatic villian. There are even people who choose to live a "Vampire lifestyle" which is a sort of alternative subculture. A lot of it has been with mixed with neo Gothic aesthetics. Although in the modern day, disbelief in vampires are high, reportings are still sighted and societies are formed for social reasons. In 2003, allegations of vampire attacks swept through Malawi and people were stoned to death as they believed the government were colluding with vampires. Cases such as the chupacabra of Mexico and Puerto Rico have said to seen a creature that sucks the blood of domesticated animals.
The traits of vampires can vary depending on film/novel/television show. Many traits are similar whilst others can lack certain traits or weaknesses.
Here are the seven traits that can vary in a vampire:
- Skin Colour
- Fangs
- Invisible to reflection
- Film
- Shadow
- Attractivness
- How they die (explode on fire or decay into dust)
Here are the eleven weaknesses that can vary in a vampire:
- Decapitation
- Drowning
- Fire
- Silver
- Garlic
- Holy Symbols
- Running Water
- Invitation
- Arithmomania
Here are the ten different traits the can vary in a vampire:
- Immortality
- Enhanced Strength
- Enhanced Speed
- Unnatural Healing
- Flight
- Shape-shifting/Absorption
- Psychic Powers
- Telekinesis
- Pyrokinesis
Here are the seven reproduction and feeding traits of vampires that can vary:
- Fertility
- Reproduce via bite
- Reproduce via transfusion
- Reproduce via consumption of vampire blood after bite
- Inhabited by demons
- Diet (what sort of blood or life force)
- Effect on victims
Another trait is whether vampires are part of an order or society and whether humans know about their existence.
As well as combining my two previous ideas from previous projects (one on a vampire and one on dragons), I also decided it would be a great idea combining the two of my favourite genres together, horror and fantasy. As vampires I already seen within the fantasy genre I thought it would be perfect to combine them.
Dragons
Dragons are mythical creatures usually depicted as gigantic and powerful serpent or reptilian creature with magical or spiritual abilities. The most well known dragons in culture either come from European folk traditions or Oriental dragons which come from the Chinese dragon (lóng).
Dragons are perceived differently by different cultures. Sometimes they are described to be able to breathe and spit fire or poison as well as many other elements. They are usually serpentine or reptilian, hatch from eggs and possess feathered or scaly bodies. They are also portrayed as having large yellow or red eyes. Sometimes they are portrayed with dorsal spines, keeled scales, or leathery bat-like wings. Winged dragons are only in European dragons. Oriental dragons are more serpentine. Dragons can have no legs, two, four, or more. A dragon with wings but only a single pair of legs is a wyvern. Modern depictions of dragons are larger than their original representations, which were often smaller than humans.
Dragons have spiritual significance in various religions and cultures. In East Asian cultures dragons were and still are revered as representing the primal forces of nature, religion and the universe. Dragons are associated with wisdom and often depicted to be wiser than humans and in longevity. They usually possess some form of magic and are often associated with wells, rain, and rivers. Some cultures say they are capable of human speech.
An Western Dragon. A Chinese Dragon.
I explored the motivation, behaviour, psychology and capabilities of the dragon, brain storming and writing down ideas/analysis of the dragon.
Putting it a futuristic setting reminded me of 'modern' vampire films such as Daybreakers, Night Watch, Day Watch and Blade which really influenced me with their dark and urban feel. Another influence would be the Underworld film series where although the vampires are antagonised, the main protagonist is a vampire likewise with the film blade. This gives the audience a sense of sympathy with the character, or view them more as a anti-hero. In the fourth Underworld film where the human government have killed of almost all vampires and believe that lycans (werwolves to be extinct) and I wanted to represent that kind of situation in a shorter story so that the audience feels some sympathy with the vampires. In the film the vampire declares about how the vampires came back to take the authorative role in society and the film Daybreakers influenced me as in that film, the vampires are the species that dominate the world and are in charge of the governments whilst humans are the ones who are hunted for farming and harvesting. The films Day Watch and Night Watch are urban fantasy that has vampires and are also considered modern Gothic horror films and these influenced me with the 'modern vampire' idea as my vampire is a day walker.
When filming certain scenes, especially fights or dramatic scenes I used a GoPro Hero 2 head camera which I derived from a first person point of view perspective which is particularly common in horror films such as the film Blair Witch Project, Troll Hunter, Cloverfield and Halloween where it is either to be show in a 'found footage' manner or to immerse the audience by showing them the 'killer/antagonists' point of view.
Slow motion was used in the fight scenes which I took influence from the films 300, Sherlock Holmes movies and Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter which really emphasised the dramatic movement of the moves during the fight sequences and build up suspension for the audience. These influences show how the bigger picture has helped me approach my project,
Video clip of the famous fight scene of Leonidas fighting single handily fighting off Persian soldiers from the film: 300.
Looking at the powers of the characters I decided I need to show their abilities off using after effects. One of the main character, a female human/dragon hybrid who covertly tracks and stalks the main protagonist of the film. She has vampirism far back in her ancestral bloodline, she can combine still utilise the blood magic of the vampires even though she is a dragon, human/elf hybrid. I decided to show the magic she uses by using red to represent blood and the dark character that she is. Red is also a stand out colour. I was influenced by Scarlet Witch in the Avengers: Age of Ultron Movie. Her powers include telekinesis and telepathy. The red energy of her powers matches the dark red colour schemes of her clothes.
As seen in the Avengers movie.
A clip form my FMP trailer.
The glow of the vampire's eyes are influenced by the vampires in the game The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim: Dawnguard. What appealed to me about their vampires was there eye glow and that if your character does not feed, over days, the vampirism grows stronger and the eyes glow brighter. I was also influenced by the film Daybreakers as their vampires had yellow eyes but only in the iris so I decided to add the effect only onto the iris of the eyes but retain the yellow glow.
As seen in Skyrim a dunmer (dark elf) infected with vampirism.
A vampire in Daybreakers.
A vampire in Daybreakers.
A short clip from my trailer of glowing eyes.
Bibliography (Harvard Format)
30 Days of Night (2007), film, directed by David Slade. United States. 109 minutes.
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. United States. 105 minutes
Blade II (2002), film, directed by Guillermo del Toro. United States. 116 minutes.
Blade (1998), film, directed by Stephen Norrington. United States. 120 minutes.
Blade: Trinity (2004), film, directed by David S. Goyer. United States. 113 minutes.
Bram Stoker. (1897), Dracula, London: Archibald Constable and Company (UK). 400.
Byzantium (2013), film, directed by Neil Jordan. Ireland, United Kingdom, United States. 118 minutes.
Castlevania (1986), game [Family Computer Disk System]. Konami: Tokyo, Japan.
Day Watch (2006), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. Russia, Uzbek. 131 minutes.
Daybreakers (2009), film, directed by Michael Spierig and Peter Spierig. Australia, United States. 98 minutes.
Dragonheart ()1996), film, directed by Rob Cohen. United States, Slovakia, United Kingdom. 103 minutes.
Dungeons & Dragons (2000), film directed by Courtney Solomon. United States, Czech Republic. 107 minutes.
Dungeons & Dragons: Wrath of the Dragon God (2005). 105 minutes.
D-War (디워) (2007), film, directed by Shim Hyung-rae. South Korea. 90 minutes.
From Dusk till Dawn (1996), film, directed by Robert Rodriguez. United States. 108 minutes.
John Carpenter's Vampires (1998), film directed by John Carpenter. United States 108 minutes.
Mr Vampire (1985), film, directed by Ricky Lau. Hong King. 96 minutes.
Night Watch (2004), film, directed by Timur Bekmambetov. Russia. 114 minutes.
Reign of Fire (2002), film, directed by Rob Bowman. United Kingdom, United States. 102 minutes.
Supernatural (2005), television series, created by Erik Kripke. United States, Canada. 38-45 minutes.
The Elder Scrolls V: Dawnguard DLC (2012), game, Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Elder Scrolls V: Dragonborn DLC (2013), game, Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011), game [Xbox 360], Bethesda Game Studios: Rockville, United States.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012), film, directed by Peter Jackson. New Zealand, United States. 169 minutes.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (2013), film, directed by Peter Jackson. New Zealand, United States. 161 minutes.
The Lost Boys (1987), film, directed by Joel Schumacher. United States. 93 minutes.
Underworld (2002), film, directed by Les Wiseman. United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary, United States. 121 minutes.
Underworld: Awakening (2012), film, directed by Mans Marlind and Bjorn Stein. United States. 88 minutes.Underworld (2002), film, directed by Les Wiseman. United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary, United States. 121 minutes.
Underworld: Evolution (2006), film, directed by Len Wiseman. United States. 106 minutes.
Underworld: Rise of the Lycans (2009), film, directed by Patrick Tatopoulos. United States. 92 minutes.
Van Helsing (2004), film, directed by Stephen Sommers. United States. 131 minutes.
The bibliography shows the sources and references I have used for inspiration and research for my work.
Timeline of Research:
Dipity timeline:
This timeline below shows films, tv shows, games and books that I have seen and researched on. Using the dipity timeline I can easily display what I've researched and watched (alongside doing the bibliography). It's a format that allows me to show key historical dates and events of the historical context of my research such as when certain book, films, tv shows or games were released or published.
No comments:
Post a Comment