Towards the beginning of the Buffy episode you hear an example of mise en scene. The episode begins with a woman talking and you can immediately tell she must be a professor teaching a class. I chose this example because it is the very beginning of the story and therefore sets the scene for the episode. It is an example of mise en scene because it does a good job representing production design. You can immediately imagine the set and props being used, and imagine what the students’ and teacher’s costumes might look like. This example of mise en scene contributes to the aesthetic of horror by building a small amount of suspense. During the scene Buffy has an intense dream, which gives the audience a hint that something scary may happen in the future.
A little less than half way into the episode there is a great example of diegetic sound. This example is while two men are talking. I chose this example because it reveals something about the characters and also gives an excellent example of diegetic sound. From the beginning of the scene you immediately hear the voices of the characters, you can also hear their footsteps so you know they are walking. This example contributes to the aesthetic of horror because of the things you hear the characters say. While they are talking you hear that they have a secret that they can’t tell, which causes the audience to be curious about what it is.
The third example represents non-diegetic sound. This example takes place about thirteen minutes into the episode and begins with soft background music that begins to deepen, and make the mood more intense. The music sounds very dark and scary. I chose this example because it really starts to make this episode seem more dark, which is a switch from how the beginning is and you start to understand why this show is seen a horror show. This example represents non-diegetic sound because it is not sound that is actually being made by what’s going on, but is instead just background music. I think this definitely contributes to the aesthetic of horror because it makes the sounds make the mood very dark and scary, and also build suspense as if something bad is going to happen.
It is interesting to look at Buffy now compared to when it was airing. The non-diegetic music in the movie would have been scary years ago, but now seems corny. You refer to the non-diegetic music making the episode seem dark and scary. Even though the music may sound corny to us, it still triggers the anticipation that comes with horror. It tells us that something is going to go wrong.
I think without suspense and anticipation, it would be incredibly challenging to make a horror movie or show. I agree with you that the suspense starts to build at the beginning, when the episode is being set up. I also think that with a show like Buffy, if you know anything about it there is already anticipation to begin with. The entire series is built around suspense and anticipation. Just like when you go to scary movies, you know what you are getting yourself into, so the suspense has already started to build before the movie begins.
I love your example of mise en scene in the first paragraph. For me, I think Mise en scène refer to a production design, which contains sets, props and costumes. It’s also present in lighting, and includes actor’s performance. Just like your mentioned, a woman talking is an element of the mise en scene. Also , I choose the similar example of the non-diegetic sound. When the background music appear, all the lightening are starts to dark. All of above are make me feel scare and nervous. So I believe mise en scene, diegetic and non-diegetic are contribute to the horror for the video.
I like these three examples you listed in each paragraph, and you gave each one analyse. Especially I agree with the statement of the non-diegetic sound, I am also usually scared by strange and weird background music, ad it let people wonder what will happen later but difficult to imagine. Which I confused a little bit is you said “This example of mise en scene contributes to the aesthetic of horror by building a small amount of suspense.” in the first paragraph, because I wanna know how the conversation of Buffy and her instructor can make a suspenseful atmosphere. I think in the beginning of the film is just a common description, so I can hardly feel any horror.