User:Meriann123/sandbox

Curve
Directed by	Tim Egan
Written by	Tim Egan
Screenplay by	Tim Egan
Story by	Tim Egan
Produced by	Ahren Morris
Starring	Laura Jane Turner
Cinematography	Tim Egan
Edited by	Tim Egan
Production company	Lodestone Films
Release date	April 16, 2016 (2016-04-16)
Running time	9:51
Country	Australia
Language	English

Curve is a short horror film released in April 16, 2016 in the United States and written and directed by Tim Egan in Australia Curve Horror Short Film. It displays a woman battling to remain from falling to her death from a smooth concrete surface into an abyss. The audience is shown her struggle through cinematic techniques, leaving the question of whether she can escape a life-or- death situation.

Plot

As outlined, by Rob Munday, the film depicts a nameless woman who is clinging onto life . Moreover, the Short of the Week website explains how she is shown gripping a high smooth, curved surface above an abyss. She is shown trying to hold on to her safety before falling to her death. Therefore, it is considered to be a dark, minimalistic and truly unsettling film. The climax of rain and the slow slipping of the woman's hands is chilling, as the screen finally blinks to the empty curve, now suggesting either the death or the long sinister fall that she faced.

Cast

• Laura Jane Turner as The Woman

Genre

Psychological horror

Curve is arguably a psychological horror, metaphorically representing depression as a dark, boundless pit which the Curve creates. The authors Charles Forceville and Sissy Paling collaboratively analyze the metaphorical representation of depression in short, wordless animation films upon the Sage Journals website. Together, they concluded the films feature two dominant metaphors: depression is a dark monster and depression is a dark confining space , proposing that these two can be understood linked based on Lakoff’s ‘duals’ theory discussed in ‘The contemporary theory of metaphor’ (1992). The proposed metaphors that repeatedly establish depression as dark in short, wordless films are reflective of the dark visual aspects seen in Curve.

Survival horror

Furthermore, Alison Foreman suggests in the IndieWire website article that 'the best survival films immerse viewers in life-or-death scenarios, balancing realism and believability with slow-burn suspense', which is evident in a spine-chilling manner that The Woman grips onto the smooth slope and screams frustratedly with raw emotion . Usually set in hostile, almost inescapable environments, survival thrillers such as Curve convey the real-life problems of danger and how it is sometimes undefeated.

Themes

Fear

Fear

The stripped-back narrative primarily showcases the woman's fear. Within Curve, the woman displays behavioral reactions associated with fleeing in response to recognizing the potential proposed threat. Paul Ekman, a pioneer in the study of emotions, presents fear as one of the seven universally experienced emotions . Yet, Dhruv Trivedi further suggests that the short horror film presents death and hopelessness . Collectively, these three themes of fear, death, and hopelessness contribute to establishing a hard-hitting vision, typically constructed in horror films. Additionally, Trevedi outlines that Curve scares by inciting the fear of the unknown, evoking the inexplicable scenario metaphorically as a nightmare.

Hope

According to Chege Karamo, this film is about a situation with no hope of recovery because the film depicts a situation where The Woman character in Curve can barely hold onto the slippery concrete surface she lies on and the area offers no evident escape roots. Chege Karamo then explores visual imagery, which can be accessed on Okay Bliss, of The Woman, noticing the bloody handprints on the wall opposite her which descend into the dark, indicating that whoever was on the other side fell in. Additionally, using a silver chain on her neck, to make a final, desperate attempt to escape, before the screen goes black. Finally, it is noted the film closes with a view of the empty slope.

Sound

Audio

The only audio heard is that of The Woman herself, the person who supposedly suffered her inevitable fate before her, and the suspenseful sounds of nature (e.g. the sea and rain), which, according to The Artifice, contributes to the building of tension and cinematic climax . M. L. Flood further suggests that 'the challenge is for Hollywood to tell a story by making as little noise as possible and featuring little to no dialogue.', allowing the story to be constructed 'visually through unique scenes, dynamic settings, and engaging action to keep audiences entertained. Doing this allows more room for the audience to decide how the story speaks to them.

Language

Curve is a wordless short horror film and so has no dialogue. This means that Curve is not regionally predetermined to Australia. It can be watched and understood globally by viewers as it was uploaded onto online streaming services such as YouTube, Rotten Tomatoes, and IMDb. Recently, it was also shared on social media pages such as TikTok gaining more interest from an online audience.

Within 2014, Addley Bianus the research result found that four components in 'Film Language' i.e. cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing, and audio have played a big role in horror film genre from the technical aspect and could also influence the development of story plot of a horror film . Addley Bianus' research, suggests that the suitability of scripted language in horror is dependent as it was concluded that horror films apply similar 'Film Language' and so using repetitive language features can tarnish the overall creativity in horror films.

Reception

With its trailer being released on director Tim Egan's Youtube page on January 10, 2015, Curve reached film festivals globally and was received positive reviews from critics and viewers alike. Traveling from festivals such as FrightFest and Tribeca, the full short was finally released on social media and social networking service, Facebook, and video hosting platform, Vimeo on June 23, 2017, ensuing in further publication on other Youtube platforms such as Short of the Week which to date has received 3.5 million views.

Accolades

Awards

Year	Award Title
2016	Tribeca Film Festival
2016	Sitges Film Festival
2016	Winner Best Short Horror Fantastic Fest
2017	Winner Best Horror Short The iHorror Awards
no date	Golden Eye Giff
no date	Transilvania International Film Festival

See also

• Curve at IMDb
• Curve at Rotten Tomatoes