Thread by @PresidentPat

Happy Halloween!!!

I wanted to take the time out to share my experience teaching "History of Horror Films" as a middle school elective with all of you.

Spooky thread.

The class was birthed by the pandemic. Luckily, I work at a school that encourages teachers to design their own electives based on their passions. And in the midst of concurrent teaching, I knew that we needed something fresh and new to engage kids while they were at home.

At the time, I had just watched @HorrorNoirefilm for the 100th time, ordered the book, and my partner and I were working on a concept for a Black Horror museum and haunted house. I'm all about fusing my passions. And thus, I submitted a syllabus to the English dept for the class.

YOU CAN WATCH R-RATED MOVIES?

Answer: sort of.
All kids at my school sign waivers for PG13 movies. For this class, I sent home another reminder. And for MS, I drew the line at sexual content. So, the films we watched in full, were edited for sex. I had time stamps and would FF.

We start the class with a simple question... "Why a horror class?"

We analyzed data and research on the popularity of horror films, fear & the brain, and the rich history of horror as a genre. We shared personal histories of horror films.

Then... we get into scholarly reading. It's important that students know the elements of horror. Robin Means Coleman does a great job spelling out the Horror elements for all of us in a book. It's important that students know what actually makes horror... horror.

I also utilized Horror Noire for a historical timeline to help us move through the class. We start at the very beginning. We watch the first horror film Le Manior Du Diable (1896)! Students laugh at this movie and we discuss, "Why would this film be horrifying?"

Next, we spend a lot of time in the silent film era. We discuss silent film elements and dive deep into expressionist art. And this brings us to our first feature-length film.... the LEGENDARY... NOSFERATU (1922).

After we finish Nosferatu, It's time to assess. Our first assessment comes in two parts. First, students are assessed on the horror elements. Students are tasked w/ taking a Disney Short (#Pip) and turning it into a horror film. Next, students get a week to make a silent film.

Before we leave the silent film era, we have to look at America's first Feature-Length Film: Birth of a Nation. And this opens the gate to discuss how horror films reflect current fears of society with intention. This is the "Horror films are more than jump scares" ah ha!

After we leave here, now we are beginning to look at horror films through a new lens... it's relationship to current society and social issues. And this is the perfect time to jump right over to John Carpenter's Halloween (1978). (Kids always always ask about Michael Meyers)

But ... we don't just watch the film from a horror elements lens. Before we watch it. We dissect the historical landscape the film was released in. Halloween is not just scary b/c a man in a mask... it's scary because he's killing white women in a white suburban town in the 70s

While the serial killers were going wild out west and there were national smear campaigns to show how dangerous inner cities with Black folks were... the safest place to be was in the white midwest ... right??? Looking at it through that lens changed the game for my kids...

This year, kids wanted to dig more into the paranormal and symbolism. And so the most iconic film I could choose for them was: The Sixth Sense.

They were pointing out how the colors red and green were intentionally used throughout the film. I didn't even notice that @ first.

They discussed how kids, often seen as innocent, are used as vessels in horror films to illustrate a point. They discussed how the film tackles grief, mental health in children, and divorce... all relatable issues. & the horror elements made it more "in your face"

We of course touched on tropes in horror. Do Black people always die first? How are women portrayed in Horror films compared to men? Who are usually the killers? Why? Who are usually the victims? Why?

These were such crucial questions to ask...

There were some grab bag moments of course. Iconic Monsters in Horror. & How horror uses the holidays as a backdrop. These were just fun to watch and explore.

Before the class ends, students' final project includes creating a film pitch with a title, logline, summary, film poster & their own original theme song or motif (@soundtrap)!

@GOODSTEPH_ (an amazing song designer) comes and gives a lecture on "music in the movies"...iconic

Student work

When a 45-year-old man hears "My Axe" by Insane Clown Posse on the radio he goes berserk and thinks the song is talking to him. He stealthily buys an axe and begins doing what the song says and resorts to something horrid.

12 young chefs under 16 have all come to compete in Flavor Fantasies, a brand-new cooking competition. [But] some weird events happen. Will the young adult’s lives be put in danger or will they end up putting other people’s lives in serious jeopardy?

When a masked killer appears in the window of a deaf woman’s summer cottage she must face her fears and find a way to escape. But how?

All in all, this class has brought me so much joy. The first semester I had 5 students. The following year, I had 10 students. We're growing in popularity. I'm learning as I go, reflecting along the way. I want this to be the best class ever!

Thanks for sticking with me y'all.

Feel free to ask any questions...

I'm grateful to raise up the next generation of horror creators, scholars and lovers.

Can we talk more? @jason_blum @Monkeypaw @JordanPeele @jamieleecurtis @halloweenmovie @PrimeVideo @soundtrap @horrornoirefilm @horrorincolor

@PromoteHorror