To Catch (or, research) a Killer

 The first thing I need to establish in order to find a tone for this opening is the development of the main character. I want the protagonist (serial killer) to evoke unease to the audience from the moment they first see him. I thought the best way to conceptualize exactly what I'm looking for is by finding some inspirations for the character and going from there. 

SOCIOPATH VS. PSYCHOPATH

my biggest mission right now is researching the differences between a sociopath and a psychopath. It's important to me that I know what goes on in our protagonist's mind so I can clearly and accurately reflect that onscreen. Does he feel initial remorse? Is that why his karma begins in the form of switching bodies? Do his feelings towards causing pain change once he experiences it himself? According to clearmindtreatment.com, what differentiates a sociopath from a psychopath is their "emotional makeup, behavior patterns, and origins of their conditions". This means I need to distinguish those differences and hint at them throughout the opening. This is obviously very ambitious to attempt in the 2 minute cutoff time of the video, but I think the details are what capture the audiences' attention in the beginning of a film, which is why this is so vital to me. so, lets dive deeper into that by first finding examples of each and deciding from there.

Souther, R. (2025, April 16). Sociopath vs. psychopath: How to spot the differences. Clear Mind Treatment.
https://clearmindtreatment.com/blog/sociopath-vs-psychopath/

SUSPECTS ACQUIRED FOR RESEARCH:

• Patrick Bateman (psychopath)
  

  American Psycho (2000)

  - Superficial charm, lack of empathy, obsession with control and image

  - Motivations: deep-seated narcissism, emptiness, insecurity, and rage
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American Psycho [Film still]. (2000). Lions Gate Films.

• Leather Face (sociopath)
  

  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

  - Acts from fear and family conditioning, emotionally reactive

  - Motivations: fear, obedience, and a desire to protect his home and family
  
   
  
  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre [Film still]. (2003). New Line Cinema.

After reviewing these 2 different characters, I feel like it's be more impactful if my protagonist was a sociopath. If he was a psychopath, he'd feel nothing by switching into his victims' bodies. Sociopaths act out of emotion, they're rarely organized, so they are more likely to care about karma.

TARGET FOUND

I can now develop my own character and take inspiration from sociopathic characters in other films! And since I wanna make a psychological horror/fantasy film opening, I can draw out inspirations from both genres. I've decided I can take small elements from characters like Nina Sayers in Black Swan (2010), Jack Torrance in The Shining (1980), Donnie Darko in Donnie Darko (2001) , and I'll try to find more. I want to give the serial killer effect, yes, but I also don't want him to feel shallow and simply murdering people for fun. Again, I don't expect to develop his whole backstory in the 2 minute opening, but I'm an actor myself, and the best advice I've gotten when acting out a short excerpt from a longer project, is to always know and analyze what happened BEFORE and AFTER that specific moment. So, by knowing our character's background and the basic premise of the overall movie, as a director and as the person editing, I can make justified and accurate decisions for this opening so it doesn't feel cliche and like another overdone serial killer movie. 

it's still there first week so I don't have a full character developed but I know I'd want him to definitely be an older man, I can even try to get an older actor to make it more realistic...and I want sociopathic characteristics to be dropped throughout the opening. Little hints to convey a certain character to the audience. For now I'm really just tying to get an overall vibe for the character and I hope storyboarding and the script will help me pinpoint what exactly I want to portray, as well as researching more on sociopathic tendencies for more accuracy.

K blog, I'll update more soon, byeeee!