Symbolism relies somewhat on the audience’s prior relationship with the motif. Although the filmmaker might be able to manipulate this association – as Tarantino makes bathrooms a negative thing in Pulp Fiction – there is almost certainly a prior relation that he can play off. While that might not be as transparent as the universality of a bathroom sign – the man and woman – there are norms that exist.

That being said, these connotations can go two ways. They can either emphasize that sense of universality, and be utalised to cross cultures, or they can be the total opposite, where the dichotomy between cultures becomes too great and affects the audience’s perception.

In most European cultures, black cats are a symbol of bad luck, and if a black cat is seen running around the streets, it is believed that something bad will happen. This is likely a result of the nocturnal mammal being connected to witches as they are awake at night, and also the fact that in Christianity, black is a symbol of evil and corruption. This perception is also prevalent in the United States, so many films – especially supernatural and horror – have used black cats as a symbol of evil.

But, in Japan, seeing a black cat on the street is considered to be good luck. In fact, throughout much of the rest of Asia, owning a black cat is a sign of luck. So if someone was to watch one of these films, they would be pushed in the opposite direction of the filmmaker’s intention, as to them, the cat is not a nefarious sign.

This is also further complicated as subtle differences in the cat’s representation can make a difference. In England, a black cat walking towards you is good luck, while walking away is bad. In Scotland, a black cat standing on your doorstep is good luck. In Italy (keeping in mind these are all European countries), a black cat sneezing is good luck and in France and other parts of Northern Europe, taking a black cat in and caring for it is good luck. So even if a filmmaker was to have some combination of these – say, a character opens the door, sees a black cat sneeze, the cat then walks in and is fed – then they will loose specific parts of the audience as they have seen something that, symbolically and culturally, means good luck.

Audiences are smart, though, and if the film is intended to be a horror, they are likely to understand fairly quickly that the cat is intended to be used for evil – it might just be an initial moment of misunderstanding or the symbol might not have the full effect that it would if it were ingrained in that culture.

References

Bakony, E 1974, ‘Non-Verbal Symbolism in Feature Films’, Journal Of The University Film Association, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 34-38

Icatcare 2017, ‘Black Cats, lucky or unlucky?’, International Cat Care [online]