Mind Map

My thriller poster mind map on the conventions and themes of the genre.

example of credits

This picture shows my first attempt at creating credits using Live Type.  I was able to learn how to create moving credits with a background. 

Opening Credits

In Media I played around with the type of credits I wanted to have one my Film. It was an interesting experiance but as always with Media Technology something always seems to go wrong. The font's range was good and I found one that if given the right background would be really creepy.

Filming Report 2

We finished filming scene 1 at the churchyard, the silence there is very creepy I must admit. As we were filming I thought about what kind of music I wanted and whether I wanted something loud or soft. The piece of filming left can be completed this weekend and all that will be left is editing, making the credits.

Filming Report

Just finished filming scene 2 of my film, for the most part it went pretty well though the Camera position was somewhat complicated by the limited amount of space. It's actually quite hard to keep to a script and not make up similar sounding sentences. I suppose it takes massive amounts of commitment and a good ability to memorise.

Now all that's left is scene 1, in which Mia is standing in front of her sisters grave and promises to find out what really happened to her.

Thriller Questions

What is the purpose of the opening to a film?

To capture the audience’s attention and drawing them into, it is also important that is excites the viewer or interests them so that they continue to watch it until the end. An opening that fails to excite or entice, leads to a boring view of the film.

What techniques can a director use to create suspense in a film?

Suspense is something that leaves the viewers heart pounding, biting their fingernails and sitting on the edge of their seat.

Music is one such technique that can be applied; loud dramatic music can set the heart jumping, low and eerie can lead to the heart freezing.

The director can also use false shocks, to increase viewer paranoia and set up for something big.

Low Key Lighting can be used to create a more intimate cinematography.

Also the use of editing cuts to change faster, or jump cuts, can also be used to increase the sense of danger and the sense of the pressure of time.

How do you think a thriller film is defined?

A thriller is something that entices people to watch it and gives being a sense of suspense and intrigue.

What films can you think of, that would fit into the thriller genre?

Constantine, The Exorcist, Rear View Window, Black Swan, Inception, Pulp Fiction…

The thriller film can be divided in to sub-genres – what different types of thriller films do you think exists?

Mystery Thriller, Supernatural Thriller aka Constantine, Psychological Thriller aka Black Swan, Adventure Thriller, Action Thriller.

What are the characteristics or conventions of a thriller film? (Consider narrative, characters, mise-en-scene, stars?)

The narrative of a thriller usually holds an element of mystery and having some sort of shock or twist in the narrative which captures the audiences attention. Characters of a thriller usually range but has certain character archetypes but it also depends on the subgenre of the thrillers:

· The lead character being put in a situation without knowing anything and stumbles through the narrative blindly.

· Usually a character that isn’t exactly normal or the conventions of normal, like Nikola Tesla from Prestige, who plays an eccentric inventor.

· The lead male having a dark and shady past, Leonardo DiCaprio has a history of playing roles like these. Shutter Island, Inception are two examples of this type.

· An innocent female being put in scary situations, such as in Scream’s opening which features a female who is unaware of the danger with the stranger she is talking to until it’s too late and ends up with he throat slit.

On that note, star appeal can reflect how good a film will be. If a film has actors or actresses that aren’t well known ore respected it can reflect how good the film will be. Big stars usually means a bigger budget and implies a greater quality of film but also will draw fans to watch even if thrillers aren’t normally something they indulge in.

What do you think is the audience pleasure of a thriller?

Earlier I identified that a thriller is something that gives people an thriller and a sense of intrigue. However the pleasures of watching a thriller can vary on the type of thriller and how well the film is shot.

If an viewer is watching a thriller they want to be excited. If they like mystery thrillers the intrigue and puzzling out of the plot may give them enjoyment, or maybe it’s the race against time to catch the killer before he strikes again or perhaps it’s the more physiological side of things that intrigues them, getting inside of the mind of the killer.

Psychological thrillers deal with lots of different concepts like multiple personalities disorders or theories like time travel (The Butterfly Effect) or Obsession (View From A Rear Window).

The audience could be pleasured by the sheer abnormality or deviation from the normal and wandering, however psychological films can incorporate elements of violence or darker themes like sexual abuse such as Black Swan in which Natalie Portman’s characters ends up committing a form of suicide by stabbing herself repeatedly and has themes of sexual abuse and mental instability.

Action Thrillers can be very popular, such as the Bourne Trilogy or the Bond Films. This normal has very stark ‘Good and Bad’ characters and has more common stereotypes. These types can be the types that makes peoples heart pound and there mind race. The thoughts of are the characters going to make it? Will they die?

Thriller pleasure however is changing as we move into the twenty-first century and the traditional techniques such Detectives in long coats and top hats are left behind as new thriller narratives are explored.

Using the internet research the ‘top 50 thriller films’. Look at the top twenty – which ones have you watched? If not many, why do you think that is?

The Twently Top Thrillers:

· Pulp Fiction

· Inception

· The Dark Knight

· Goodfellas

· Fight Club

· Rear Window

· Psycho

· The Usual Suspects

· The Silence of the Lambs

· Se7en

· Memento

· Leon

· North by Northwest

· Double Indemnity

· M

· Taxi Driver

· Vertigo

· Terminator 2: Judgment Day

· Elite Squad 2

· Alien

Out of these twenty I have watched Inception, Terminator 2, Goodfellas and Alien. I don’t think I’ve watched many thrillers because I’m not one of those people that like scary things or psychological thrillers. I prefer more action films like James Bond or fantasy films like Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief or Harry Potter. I watched a lot of Disney films growing up and I still love films like Bambi and the Lion King.

Storyboard

 

CAST:
MIA ROSENBERG
KRISTIN ROSENBERG
TIMO, THE DOG

SCENE 1:

Mia Rosenberg stands in front of a grave, her sister’s. Lays flowers at the grave.
MIA: I’ll find out what really happened, I promise.
END SCENE

SCENE 2:
MIA: why couldn’t you have just told what was wrong, Rea? Why did you have to…?”
Kristin Rosenberg comes in.
KRISTIN: Why can’t you leave the past be? Why? Your sister, my daughter is dead! She isn’t coming back!
Mia stands up. Slams hands on table.
MIA: It is because she is my sister I can’t just leave it be! She wouldn’t have killed herself! I know her!
Mia shakes her head.
MIA: I’m going for a walk; I need to clear my head.
Mia picks up coat, walks down hallway, walks up to the steps and exits the garden with a wave to her dog, Timo.
MIA: Not today, boy.
END SCENE

SCENE 3:
Mia is walking, when she here a twig snap behind her. She looks around. No one there. Continues walking. Hears footsteps, looks around again. No one there.
MIA: Hello? Is – Is someone there?
Silence.
Continues walking, faster than before. Footsteps again and cracking of twigs. Mia whirls around.
MIA: Come out! Whoever you are! I know you’re there!
Jumps, makes low scream. Whirls around. Her dog sits next to her.
MIA: Timo! God, you gave me a scare! How on earth did you get out?
Kneels down, scratches dog’s head.
MIA: I’m getting as paranoid as Rea must have been, huh boy? I wonder if this is what she felt…
END SCENE

Audience Pleasure

I did a survey around my local neighbourhood on what they liked about thrillers and even if they liked thrillers. I used an open ended questionaire asked them a few questions:

How old are you?

Do you like thrillers? If yes, what do you like about them? If not, is it for any particular reason?


Did you ever use to like thrillers? How old were you if you did?

What kind of movies do you like now, any examples?

The general findings were that some adults (9/19 Participents) were okay with thrillers but had enjoyed them more when they were younger, around the ages of 16 to 21. The teenagers that did my survey did enjoy thrillers quite a lot, though they tended to like movies such as Inception which is more modern then older movies like M. Though whether it is for the better quality or the star appeal of current actors was hard to define. A few children that did the survey appeared to have little interest in thrillers, preferrering more child geared movies like Cars by Disney and Pixar.

This has led me to conclude my target audience would be teenagers to young adults.

Thoughts On A Genre

The thriller genre I believe has a diverse audience. In terms of age I tend to lean towards an elder audience, usually from late teens to adults. Children would interpret modern day thrillers as very scary, such as The Exorcist and would then go against the age certificate laws. I think elderly people wouldn’t enjoy thrillers as much as say a young adult, so it leads me to think thrillers target a mature audience. I also think it would have to be an audience that enjoyed suspense and having their hearts pound. In terms of gender, it would be hard to say. Gender also depends on the kind of thriller. Horror Thrillers I would think more boys, but mystery thrillers I would say both.  I myself don’t particularly enjoy thrillers with the exception of one or two but my friend loves them. We’re both girls, so I would argue gender doesn’t matter so much a preference and I think this shows in the movie industries advertisement.  Black Swan features Natalie Portman, while Inception features Leonardo DiCaprio. They both have star appeal to both genders.