'Come Be Creepy With Us' analysis

'Come Be Creepy With Us' analysis

'Come Be Creepy With Us' (Link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46jo7hwHeZ0) is a 2019 short film directed by Beth Fletcher. I found this short film on the youtube channel 'Short of the Week' which was one of the channels suggested by Neil, a former A level Film studies student during his talk to our class, as a good channel for watching more short films that can influence our own creative process. I chose to watch and analyse 'Come Be Creepy With Us' because it is a Coming-of-Age film, the same genre which I have chosen for my screenplay and digital storyboard, however it is also a horror film which is an interesting combination of two genres. 

'Come Be Creepy With Us' follows a traditional three-act-structure, the inciting incident of the short film takes place early on as Anna starts seeing weird, supernatural things happening in her apartment, the mid-plot twist comes as it is revealed that Bonnie is not a threat but instead a friend of Anna's, the rising action is Anna being told by Bonnie to join her and having to make a decision between going with her friends or Bonnie and the climax of the film occurs as Anna realises the events of the plot have all been a dream/hallucination. 

This short film may better be understood by viewers who are familiar with the conventions of typical horror films such as 'Friday the 13th' and 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' which are clear influences on the narrative of the film, this sets the viewer up with the expectation that the narrative will go in a certain direction which the filmmakers then subvert. Bonnie may be expected to be a traditional horror monster or villain however the short film instead humanises her and makes her relatable to the viewer, one of the important feautures of any Coming-of-Age film as highlighted in the video I watched before. Bonnie is also a source of comedy and alleviates some of the tension built up in the first half of the plot. The ending of the short film is surreal and up to interpretation but using the last two steps of Dan Harmon's story circle it makes some sense as Anna returns to a familair situation having changed as she literally returns to the same situation she was in at the beginning of the short film however more empathetic and self-reflective than she was before.

 'Come Be Creepy With Us' uses microelements to effectively enhance the narrative. The microelements in the first half of the short film all help to build the atmosphere of a horror film which help to make the subversion of these tropes so much more shocking and impactful. In the opening scene the camera zooms in on Anna, suggesting she is being watched or followed. Later in the short film the camera focuses on Bonnie from high angles showing her as vulnerable and relatable.

Lighting is very vital to establishing an atmosphere of tension and horror, the green lighting in the beginning of the film evokes feelings of disgust and horror and is reminiscent of films like 'Ghostbusters' but later in the film it takes on a different significance.Throughout the first half of the film Anna is frequently shown as being in the dark or the shadows whereas her friends are fully illuminated reflecting her different feelings to what is going on and the fact she is being followed by Bonnie, later in the short film however these roles are reversed as it turns out Anna's friends are shallow. The figure of Bonnie in the hallway is initially back lit to intentionally hide her character from the viewer and leave them to expect she is more sinister or scary than she really is.

The editing is vital to the effectiveness of 'Come Be Creepy With Us', the quick editing during the moments of horror are used to induce shock and fear in the viewer. The conversation between Anna and Bonnie take place over multiple different scenes however the editing puts them together as one continuous conversation using match cuts between lips to bidge the location changes.

I personally really enjoyed 'Come Be Creepy With Us' and it is a great example of a short film that follows some of the advise from the research I have found including featuring a flawed main character, showing the specific personality of the filmmaker through the film and following the three-act-structure and Dan Harmon's story circle. 

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