How to walk the 'fear factor' tightrope

Rarely do ads actually require a 'fear factor' to be effective. After all, ads that are too intense run the risk of forcing viewers to shut off their TV or click away from an app. 

Evoking the eye-grabbing qualities that horror films harness can benefit any ad.

However, evoking the eye-grabbing qualities that horror films harness (and that brands crave) can benefit any ad, from the imperative to the silly. 

As a commercial director and filmmaker who focuses mostly on the horror genre, here are some common techniques your creative or production team can adapt to your next top-level branded project.

Above: Films such as The Thing play on audience's obsession with the unknown.

Harness fear of the unknown 

A viewer’s latent obsession with the unknown - not knowing what lurks in the metaphorical or literal shadows, or what might be coming from around the corner - can keep audiences glued to their screens until the end of any spot, from six seconds to 60, if implemented correctly. The most effective horror films of our time, from The Thing to Jaws, play on this technique.

A viewer’s latent obsession with the unknown can keep audiences glued to their screens.

Tubi recently generated plenty of buzz in their Super Bowl ad Rabbit Holes [below] directed by Tom Kuntz. While Kuntz is more known for comedy, Rabbit Holes used plenty of horror plot elements: the uncanny rabbits sneaking up on unsuspecting citizens and literally dragging 'victims' down mysterious pits into the unknown. 

The ad drew Super Bowl viewing audiences in with the question: “...where is this going?” Until they knew, they weren’t about to leave the room for a snack break. If your story can present a strong enough ‘unknown’ that audiences feel compelled to know how it will end, you can create a truly impactful experience.

Above: Tubi's spot used plenty of horror plot elements.

Twist the familiar

Horror movies leverage some tactics that advertisers can’t include for obvious reasons, like heavy gore and TV violence, and so they have to rely on more subtle, psychological tools of the trade. In my short film Safe and Sound, the main character was alerted to the antagonist with what should have been a safety feature: the chime of a motion-sensing alarm. 

The rapid zig-zagging of reality startles audiences without compromising their viewership. 

In a similar vein, presenting an ordinary or common concept, then quickly and unexpectedly subverting the traditional role of that concept, can jar viewers enough to make your ad memorable. This technique is called misdirection: letting audiences believe one thing, only to change the context last minute and produce an entirely different narrative. The rapid zig-zagging of reality startles audiences without compromising their viewership. 

Above: Kammer's short film subverted an ordinary concept to jar viewers. 

In the Sandy Hook Promise PSA Evan [below], audiences discover that a future school shooter, an attending student, actually sits in the background of the ad the entire time. The ad subverts the narrative of an ordinary school day, and even a blossoming teenage romance, by cutting it short in a disturbing fashion. Here, however, the threat remains in plain sight for the other students and viewers at home; they just don’t see it for what it is until it is far too late. 

Viewers tend not to forget what shocks them.

Another Sandy Hook Promise spot, Back To School Essentials, begins as a common shopping list for new students, only to slowly devolve into other, more dire cases for the use of school supplies. In any situation where brands can make viewers think they’re watching one thing and eventually see another, they can leave a massive impact because viewers tend not to forget what shocks them.

Above: The PSA for Sandy Hook subverts the narrative of a normal school day.

Turn up the heat (but don’t burn your audience) 

Audience's brains are well-trained enough to recognise horror cinematography cues. Techniques like dark lighting, suspenseful music and certain camera angles will instantly grab attention and convey that something is amiss without having to say so. Many commercials are sunny and bright, which eliminates important stakes for viewers and can lead audiences to tune out ad rolls as a result. Pair the above techniques with visual cues common in horror genre content and no one is going to hit the skip button. 

For scarier ads, the story has to be important enough to warrant the tone. 

Having said this, there are lines you can cross to your brand’s detriment. Shock tactics for marketing’s sake, without regard to the ethos of your company or any care for your audience, jump the line of ‘using horror tactics in advertising’ straight into unethical territory. 

These could include the use of gore in unwarranted ways, or creating disturbing imagery to promote an untruthful message. It’s easy to be too heavy-handed in your horror and turn off audiences. For scarier ads, the story has to be important enough to warrant the tone. Ads that cause fear without the foundation of a strong message can turn off audiences instead.