Thrillers are essentially about the battle of justice vs. injustice. A thriller is a film of suspense with a plot structure can have elements of a chase. Commonly thrillers progress with a growing sense of threat or danger and the excitement of pursuit. Events in the storyline make the film progress, and allow the audience to second guess what will happen next. In many films this will be wrong so adds to suspense. The dialogue in thrillers never contains a complete explanation of events or plot, to give it pace, and maintain the mystery, which is essential in building up suspense. Thriller has sub genres such as crime, psychological, action, disaster and supernatural.
NarrativeThriller films are normally shown from two character points of view. The first usually being the innocent victim, empathy is created for the character. Or the story is sometimes told from the view of the villain, which can lead to empathy for the villain also at their twisted understanding or perhaps disturbing past that has led to the present like in Psycho. The story can also be told from the point of view of an onlooker, detaching the audience from events so they could more observant.
Themes
Themes are commonly based on societies and current fears and worries. This may be entrapment, murder, pain or terrorism. In Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho many people thought that at the time of 1960 mothers were over mothering there children. This is shown in the film as the killer, Norman Bates, has been over mothered as a child and it has affected him mentally in his later life which drives him to murder any girl he is attracted to.
Characters Clothing
Dress codes differ depending on the context of the plot, for example in Running scared, the protagonist Joey Gazelle is not smartly dressed, but is casually dressed, in non expensive clothing. Similar to dress codes for an action thriller like Die Hard for which Bruce Willis wears casual, masculine clothing, which helps empower his characters appearance. Gangster thrillers always have sharp, smart suits. But dress codes for Slasher thrillers especially for female characters are sexy or revealing this shows vulnerability.
Character Parts
In some thriller films there is a character that plays the role of a helpless innocent female in need of rescue. However could become brave like in Scream when her help is needed and she aids the police. There is normally a male hero who battles and aims to defeat the evil of a situation to return justice. The evil in thriller films can be many types of characters like a monster or a twisted boy next door. There are sometimes some similar characteristics like revenge, anger or poor social skills and understanding.Setting
The setting can be urban, isolated suburban settings, cities or quiet country villages. Contrast is sometimes presented to show help is out of reach.
Mise-en-scene
There large threatening weapons for props such as large knives and guns. Corridors and stairs are common in thrillers this shows limited vision and potential hazards. Mirrors and shadows/silhouettes are also common in thrillers.
Camera and Lighting
Shots are normally point of view shots, reaction shots or close ups. There is also a lot of camera movement. Colours are also used to signify different emotions like red shows blood or danger, blue shows cold mystery or death.
Normally dim lighting hiding parts to a character like in the shower scene of Psycho you cannot see the killers face.
Sound
Non diegetic music is played through out in many thrillers to build tension. Common music in thrillers would be strings. These are played at different tempos that will usually progress in pace if something on screen becomes more tense. Music generally reflects the mind of the victim/character.
Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho
Sound
Non Diegetic music - Strings are played through out the film to build tension and suspense
- Music is plaed during each murder scene to add effect and excitement.
Deigetic sound - The sound of the knife penetrating the skin comibined with the blood splatering adds effect to the murder by making it seem more real.
Camera
Establishing shots show contrast from city to countryside. This shows Marion is far from civilization and possibly help.
Exposition shots.
Exposition shots.
Close up, reaction shots show facial expressions such as nervousness and fear.
High angled shots show vulnerability.
Thriller Opening Sequence
Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs is an action thriller film directed by Quentin Tarantino. Many action films begin with some sort of action to attract the audience, but Reservoir Dogs starts with a conversation in a café followed by the title sequence before getting into the action. The conversation is between a group of men wearing black suits, there is no mention of who the men are or what they are doing which entices the viewer. The title sequence comes after which is considerably longer than an ordinary action film which is a common feature of a typical thriller film. The title sequence has music that was popular in the date the film is set. This music builds no real suspense like in Psycho but makes the film interesting and further attracts the audience.
Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction is directed by Quentin Tarantino, and is an action thriller that starts with no major action. This is common of the thriller type genre that usually starts off slow and then gets into some form of action later. Pulp Fiction begins with a conversation between two thieves/criminals in a restaurant. After this conversation the theives begin to rob the restaurant when it cuts to the title sequence which takes up a long period of time like in many common thrillers.
Top 5 Thriller Conventions
-Suspense building music
-Murder/danger scene
-Realistic action and reaction
-A protagonist
-Not a 'straight forward' story line which is obvious and predictable but an interesting one perhaps with a twist
Top 5 Thriller Opening Conventions
-Longer than average title sequence with music that may reflect the film
-Slow starting, not straight into action
-Introduction to characters
-Establishing shot and scene setting
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Treatment
Characters
Unknown serial killer
This unknown persona is a dark character, not a lot of his skin in shown as he is well clothed. The only clear part of his body is part of his face; however most of the face is covered by a mask which is similar to the phantom of the opera mask. Not much is known about the character except he sees himself as a punisher.
Cynthia
Cynthia is a typical young female. Throughout the film we learn she is quite narcissistic and is never satisfied with herself in terms of relationships and moreover herself. However, she becomes extremely paranoid after learning her wanted death. She is somewhat anti hero as she begins to understand why she needs to atone although it is under extreme conditions.
Eric
Normally Eric is an average guy with not a lot of outgoing attributes and is Cynthia’s boyfriend. After learning that Cynthia’s life is being threatened he takes action, revealing him to be a strong character defending his loved one.
Locations
For the opening scene, Eric’s house and surrounding area is involved were it would be set at night. The only other location will be in Eric’s car.
A house surrounded by others is established, the main view of the house is from a shot outside the window, being the unknown killers first person point of view. The house appears quite ordinary, a sofa and small table are shown whilst the killer is looking through a blind.
Characters
Unknown serial killer
This unknown persona is a dark character, not a lot of his skin in shown as he is well clothed. The only clear part of his body is part of his face; however most of the face is covered by a mask which is similar to the phantom of the opera mask. Not much is known about the character except he sees himself as a punisher.
Cynthia
Cynthia is a typical young female. Throughout the film we learn she is quite narcissistic and is never satisfied with herself in terms of relationships and moreover herself. However, she becomes extremely paranoid after learning her wanted death. She is somewhat anti hero as she begins to understand why she needs to atone although it is under extreme conditions.
Eric
Normally Eric is an average guy with not a lot of outgoing attributes and is Cynthia’s boyfriend. After learning that Cynthia’s life is being threatened he takes action, revealing him to be a strong character defending his loved one.
Locations
For the opening scene, Eric’s house and surrounding area is involved were it would be set at night. The only other location will be in Eric’s car.
A house surrounded by others is established, the main view of the house is from a shot outside the window, being the unknown killers first person point of view. The house appears quite ordinary, a sofa and small table are shown whilst the killer is looking through a blind.
Plot
This film is in a slasher genre fashion where an unknown persona is present and is killing multiple people. The film starts showing a person’s house that is unknown, it appears that someone is stalking him looking through the window; the character appears to be anxious and somewhat nervous and leaves the house to go into his car. Whilst he is driving a figure sits up in the back of his car. The film then fades into another person’s house, this routine continues introducing three characters to the film and they all seem to be committing crimes. Throughout the film the three characters receive phone calls saying they would have to meet up to atone, however none of the people turn up to meet him, leading to each of their deaths. One person, a girl is given the phone call, however the girls boyfriend over hears the phone call and is now desperate to protect her. After a lot of discussion, the girl decides to meet the killer on her own; however the man gets anxious and follows her for her safety. The film now resumes from were it began, because the man is interrupting the girls meeting with the killer he must be punished, although the woman would of survived because she was planning to meet up with him. There is a struggle in the car which end up in a crash near to were he girl was meeting the killer, the film ends on a cliff-hanger viewing the wreckage.
This film is in a slasher genre fashion where an unknown persona is present and is killing multiple people. The film starts showing a person’s house that is unknown, it appears that someone is stalking him looking through the window; the character appears to be anxious and somewhat nervous and leaves the house to go into his car. Whilst he is driving a figure sits up in the back of his car. The film then fades into another person’s house, this routine continues introducing three characters to the film and they all seem to be committing crimes. Throughout the film the three characters receive phone calls saying they would have to meet up to atone, however none of the people turn up to meet him, leading to each of their deaths. One person, a girl is given the phone call, however the girls boyfriend over hears the phone call and is now desperate to protect her. After a lot of discussion, the girl decides to meet the killer on her own; however the man gets anxious and follows her for her safety. The film now resumes from were it began, because the man is interrupting the girls meeting with the killer he must be punished, although the woman would of survived because she was planning to meet up with him. There is a struggle in the car which end up in a crash near to were he girl was meeting the killer, the film ends on a cliff-hanger viewing the wreckage.
Synopsis
After the disappearance of several people all contacted by an unknown individual, Eric learns that his girlfriend, Cynthia, may be in danger. In a race against time Eric must reveal the truth if the mysterious individual has any sort of relation to the missing people and what he wants with Cynthia, and more importantly if she will share the same fate by disappearing without a trace. Although Eric is unaware that by protecting the one he loves, he is putting himself in unimaginable danger.
After the disappearance of several people all contacted by an unknown individual, Eric learns that his girlfriend, Cynthia, may be in danger. In a race against time Eric must reveal the truth if the mysterious individual has any sort of relation to the missing people and what he wants with Cynthia, and more importantly if she will share the same fate by disappearing without a trace. Although Eric is unaware that by protecting the one he loves, he is putting himself in unimaginable danger.
Target Audience
To find out about the target audience of our film we did some research. We did some primary research in the form of questionnaires and some secondary research on the internet to find out about target audiences for films of certain genres. Overall we found that our target audience is likely to be males aged 15-30. From the secondary research we found Susan Burggraf has an arousal theory is that in the circumstances of a thriller film the sensation of excitement, or arousal, felt during the film would cause the person to enjoy them. Thriller movies often appeal to people which are seeking sensation, such as adolescence.
Pre-Production
Storyboard
Shotlist
Shooting Schedule
Location Recce
Risk Assessment
Evaluation
1) Our film opening starts wit an establishment shot of a house with no mention where it is and what’s going on. Then we use juxtaposition and go to a point of view shot which the view is a person’s eyesight the audience would instantly know this due to the unsteady camera movements and heavy breathing. From this point of view the audience can see that the person is looking though a window where a person is on the sofa watching television. The camera then cuts to the interior of the house were the man stands up and walk into the kitchen. After hesitating in the kitchen with an anxious look on his face, the man grabs his car keys and exits the house into his automobile. After a short pause the man turns on the interior light in his car to reveal someone in the back seat in his interior mirror. Common forms and conventions of the opening scene of a thriller can be different compared to other genres of film. The sounds, the camera and lighting, the length of the title sequence, mise-en-scene, the setting, character parts, clothing, the theme and the narrative are all factors which change in the genre to create the thriller. The sound in a thriller genre commonly contains of a form of classical music typically strings played to create a feeling of seriousness amongst the audience. The Music generally reflects the state of mind of the victim/character which makes the viewer uncomfortable. The camera is also used as a tool to create a sense of uneasiness within the audience. The camera shots used to cause the suspense and unease include point of view shots, reaction shots and close ups, there is also fast paced camera movement. The pace of the camera movement often starts slow in thrillers and can change to a higher pace when the action comes this is known as juxtaposition. The mise-en-scene of a thriller can contain the obvious threatening objects such as weapons like guns and knives. However there are more subtle features for example mirrors stairs and long corridors with closed doors. This element of the unknown behind closed doors is a primal fear and creates suspense in the audience. Also the colours on screen are used to signify different emotions like red shows blood or danger, blue shows cold mystery or death. The length of the title sequence in the opening of a thriller is generally longer in comparison to other genres of film, also thriller films often start slow and some form of action comes later on this is to build tension. With our media project film we mainly stuck to the conventions of a typical thriller genre film. For example we used camera shots to create unease and suspense, the shots we used included a point of view shot where the audience can see through the eyes of the killer spying on an unsuspecting victim this along with the heavy breathing of the killer will create suspense in the audience. This shot from the killer’s perspective has also been seen in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. The mise-en-scene didn’t contain any weapons in the opening scene of our film as we remained with the no action policy even though the opening scene is the beginning of the end of our film and is then left on a cliff-hanger as the title sequence comes in. The mise-en-scene does, however include a mirror (interior mirror of a car) in which the killers face appears. We decided to have this shot at the end of the opening scene to further create suspense and make the audience try to second guess the reasons behind the opening scene. The title sequence is usually long in thriller film but ours is quite short, this is not us challenging the conventions of a thriller, as there were only 4 people working on our film there was a limit as to how long we can actually make it.
2) Typically in thriller films females are seen as weak and are good as victims of murder or violence. This is seen in films such as Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho where the victim is a young blonde woman who is helpless. Males a represented usually as the killer or generally the evil person or ‘bad guy’. Males are also presented as protagonists who try and save the helpless innocent female from the killer. This is the representation of stereotypical gender roles in a thriller film. In our film opening we have a two men but it is not clear what is going on. What’s happening is that the hooded man in the back seat is there to punish him for a just reason and this is seen through both narratives throughout the film. So what we have is a man punishing people or killing people often a criminal for justice, the man has no name and is seen as the protagonist. There is a female later on in the film but we subverted the stereotype where the girl is innocent and helpless to quite the opposite.
3) Our media project is an independent, low budget thriller film. It is set in Britain and stars British teenage cast, which means it will be distributed buy a low budget British film distributor. A British distributor would be more interested in our product because they know how to distribute a British film to a British teenage audience as they have the experience in the market. Hollywood distributors would not be interested in distributing our film for various reasons. For example the cast is all British unknown teenagers, Hollywood distributors usually have a major star in their films that will appeal to a large audience and do not deal with niche audiences. As it is a British film that is what a distributor would use as a unique selling point to market the film to a British audience. There is no famous actor or actress in the film so a distributor cannot work with a sellable star. To maximise the amount of tickets sold, the distributor would probably want to launch the film in school holidays because of the target audience.
4) To find out about the target audience of our film we did some research. We did some primary research in the form of questionnaires and some secondary research on the internet to find out about target audiences for films of certain genres. Overall we found that our target audience is likely to be males aged 15-30. From the secondary research we found Susan Burggraf has an arousal theory is that in the circumstances of a thriller film the sensation of excitement, or arousal, felt during the film would cause the person to enjoy them. Thriller movies often appeal to people which are seeking sensation, such as adolescence. From this we decided to create a film that would appeal to this audience. We attracted the audience by pulling the viewer in with the point of view shot with a person spying on a man. With the shot of the man appearing in the rear view mirror it makes the audience want to continue watch as they ask themselves why he is there and how he got in a locked car and what’s it all about.
6) I have learnt that the use of technology has made producing a film simpler. To create the film we used different technologies such as we used a digital camera, a PC with software on it such as Adobe premier pro. This software is user friendly as it is simple to use whilst professional at the same time. It makes it relatively easy to edit film clips and the sequence of events. We also used other technology such as the blog to upload our work to, and YouTube to view other clips of similar products.
7) Progressing from our preliminary to our main project I have learnt how to use more of the Adobe Premier Pro's features, which now means I can get more out of the software and create projects that look more professional. I had learnt from the first task that planning was key and if we didn’t plan our time effectively, the task could become time consuming. I also learnt that acting didn’t work for me as I could not take it seriously (which was one reason it took so long). Our main task went better than the preliminary task due to us knowing more bout what we were doing. I also found that the research into target audience allowed to us to make decisions which would appeal to our target audience, which we never did before. The feed back from the main task was good and we had comments about the good shots we had and how well the film flowed due to the editing.
1) Our film opening starts wit an establishment shot of a house with no mention where it is and what’s going on. Then we use juxtaposition and go to a point of view shot which the view is a person’s eyesight the audience would instantly know this due to the unsteady camera movements and heavy breathing. From this point of view the audience can see that the person is looking though a window where a person is on the sofa watching television. The camera then cuts to the interior of the house were the man stands up and walk into the kitchen. After hesitating in the kitchen with an anxious look on his face, the man grabs his car keys and exits the house into his automobile. After a short pause the man turns on the interior light in his car to reveal someone in the back seat in his interior mirror. Common forms and conventions of the opening scene of a thriller can be different compared to other genres of film. The sounds, the camera and lighting, the length of the title sequence, mise-en-scene, the setting, character parts, clothing, the theme and the narrative are all factors which change in the genre to create the thriller. The sound in a thriller genre commonly contains of a form of classical music typically strings played to create a feeling of seriousness amongst the audience. The Music generally reflects the state of mind of the victim/character which makes the viewer uncomfortable. The camera is also used as a tool to create a sense of uneasiness within the audience. The camera shots used to cause the suspense and unease include point of view shots, reaction shots and close ups, there is also fast paced camera movement. The pace of the camera movement often starts slow in thrillers and can change to a higher pace when the action comes this is known as juxtaposition. The mise-en-scene of a thriller can contain the obvious threatening objects such as weapons like guns and knives. However there are more subtle features for example mirrors stairs and long corridors with closed doors. This element of the unknown behind closed doors is a primal fear and creates suspense in the audience. Also the colours on screen are used to signify different emotions like red shows blood or danger, blue shows cold mystery or death. The length of the title sequence in the opening of a thriller is generally longer in comparison to other genres of film, also thriller films often start slow and some form of action comes later on this is to build tension. With our media project film we mainly stuck to the conventions of a typical thriller genre film. For example we used camera shots to create unease and suspense, the shots we used included a point of view shot where the audience can see through the eyes of the killer spying on an unsuspecting victim this along with the heavy breathing of the killer will create suspense in the audience. This shot from the killer’s perspective has also been seen in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. The mise-en-scene didn’t contain any weapons in the opening scene of our film as we remained with the no action policy even though the opening scene is the beginning of the end of our film and is then left on a cliff-hanger as the title sequence comes in. The mise-en-scene does, however include a mirror (interior mirror of a car) in which the killers face appears. We decided to have this shot at the end of the opening scene to further create suspense and make the audience try to second guess the reasons behind the opening scene. The title sequence is usually long in thriller film but ours is quite short, this is not us challenging the conventions of a thriller, as there were only 4 people working on our film there was a limit as to how long we can actually make it.
2) Typically in thriller films females are seen as weak and are good as victims of murder or violence. This is seen in films such as Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho where the victim is a young blonde woman who is helpless. Males a represented usually as the killer or generally the evil person or ‘bad guy’. Males are also presented as protagonists who try and save the helpless innocent female from the killer. This is the representation of stereotypical gender roles in a thriller film. In our film opening we have a two men but it is not clear what is going on. What’s happening is that the hooded man in the back seat is there to punish him for a just reason and this is seen through both narratives throughout the film. So what we have is a man punishing people or killing people often a criminal for justice, the man has no name and is seen as the protagonist. There is a female later on in the film but we subverted the stereotype where the girl is innocent and helpless to quite the opposite.
3) Our media project is an independent, low budget thriller film. It is set in Britain and stars British teenage cast, which means it will be distributed buy a low budget British film distributor. A British distributor would be more interested in our product because they know how to distribute a British film to a British teenage audience as they have the experience in the market. Hollywood distributors would not be interested in distributing our film for various reasons. For example the cast is all British unknown teenagers, Hollywood distributors usually have a major star in their films that will appeal to a large audience and do not deal with niche audiences. As it is a British film that is what a distributor would use as a unique selling point to market the film to a British audience. There is no famous actor or actress in the film so a distributor cannot work with a sellable star. To maximise the amount of tickets sold, the distributor would probably want to launch the film in school holidays because of the target audience.
4) To find out about the target audience of our film we did some research. We did some primary research in the form of questionnaires and some secondary research on the internet to find out about target audiences for films of certain genres. Overall we found that our target audience is likely to be males aged 15-30. From the secondary research we found Susan Burggraf has an arousal theory is that in the circumstances of a thriller film the sensation of excitement, or arousal, felt during the film would cause the person to enjoy them. Thriller movies often appeal to people which are seeking sensation, such as adolescence. From this we decided to create a film that would appeal to this audience. We attracted the audience by pulling the viewer in with the point of view shot with a person spying on a man. With the shot of the man appearing in the rear view mirror it makes the audience want to continue watch as they ask themselves why he is there and how he got in a locked car and what’s it all about.
6) I have learnt that the use of technology has made producing a film simpler. To create the film we used different technologies such as we used a digital camera, a PC with software on it such as Adobe premier pro. This software is user friendly as it is simple to use whilst professional at the same time. It makes it relatively easy to edit film clips and the sequence of events. We also used other technology such as the blog to upload our work to, and YouTube to view other clips of similar products.
7) Progressing from our preliminary to our main project I have learnt how to use more of the Adobe Premier Pro's features, which now means I can get more out of the software and create projects that look more professional. I had learnt from the first task that planning was key and if we didn’t plan our time effectively, the task could become time consuming. I also learnt that acting didn’t work for me as I could not take it seriously (which was one reason it took so long). Our main task went better than the preliminary task due to us knowing more bout what we were doing. I also found that the research into target audience allowed to us to make decisions which would appeal to our target audience, which we never did before. The feed back from the main task was good and we had comments about the good shots we had and how well the film flowed due to the editing.
