The critically acclaimed Blair Witch Project is one of the world’s most successful independent films of all time. The 1994 horror film received near-universal praise from critics, and is recognised as the first film to be successfully marketed primarily by the internet. Aside from being known for its improvised dialogue and newsreel style interviews, the Blair Witch Project made extensive use of a key cinematographic technique, sometimes known as “Free Cam”, to give an unprepared, unrehearsed feeling of reality – where stable imaging techniques are purposely removed and the viewers are left feeling immersed, uneasy and nervous. This technique, we regularly stumble over in the horror genre is also more widely know as “Shakey Cam”, or “Queasi Cam”. And it’s not just a rumour. Shakey Cam has been widely attributed to causing dizziness & distraction, with many viewers of the Blair Witch Project even filing complaints and reporting physical nausea, purely due to the film techniques in place. Good work directors.
Now, you might be wondering what I am doing talking about Horror Films and vomit on a business blog. However, I’ll hopefully help to clarify my reasoning by relating to a meeting I was involved in last week.
