Q1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

A Thriller is a genre of film or novel that has a gripping and often an exciting yet mysterious plot. This genre typically will include a protagonist and an antagonist that will hold the main storyline. In the thriller genre the plot tends to involve a death, or the investigation/revenge of that death. Thriller films tend to be filmed in towns or cities, in quite urban areas or in a very isolated and empty place. The characters tend to go on a journey throughout the film, travelling to many different places with events occurring because of or within the journey.

The thriller that I have filmed is based on the psychological subgenre. Before I started creating my thriller I did lots of research into the thriller genre as a whole, and then into detail as to what a psychological thriller would need to include. I watched many different thriller films such as ‘se7en’, ‘Leon the professional’ and ‘no country for old men’. I explored the different subgenres, but through my personal favourite and the audience response (from the questionnaire) doing a psychological thriller seemed to be the best subgenre to choose, I looked at psychological thrillers such as ‘Shutter Island’ and ‘saw’. Choosing a psychological thriller meant that I could play around more with the way that the opening was created and the atmosphere that it gave to the audience because in this genre the plot always unwinds to be very complex, so the opening should allow the audience to ask lots of questions. I chose to create the opening without giving too much away about the plot, this is because from the audience research that I did before starting the production.  The majority of the audience said that they preferred to watch a film that you had to concentrate on and ask questions about. Doing this grips the audience more and therefore the film would achieve its goal by making the audience want to watch more.

 

Psychological thrillers are a sub-genre from the range of thrillers, and are closely linked with some horror Genres. Psychological thrillers often include elements from drama or mystery genres, as well as its traditional thriller traits.

Themes:

Mind - This is the human consciousness; the part that has the thought, personality, memory, reason, emotion and intelligence. The mind gets used a lot to show narrative conflict, for example when characters have to battle their own minds in order to understand or reach a new level of perception.

Death - Characters are either fascinated by death or have a fear of dying.

Purpose/Existence - The reason that something exists; the aim that a human must strive for in order to understand why they exist. Characters try and discover the purpose of their lives, and the way that the narrative conflicts are often a reason for the character to discover their purpose.

Identity - The definition of a character. Characters often get confused with who they are and are out to find their real identity.

Perception - The interpretation of the world that somebody gets through their senses. Characters often misinterpreted the world around them, or outside factors alter their perception through the narrative.

Reality - Characters are often trying to find out what is true and what is not through the narrative.

Through watching psychological thrillers I noticed that there is typically one charachter (the one that has the disturbances) that is isolate and alone, I had to make sure that this was portrayed within my film as this is what the audience would expect and it creates an isolate and worried atmosphere so the auience will start to empathise with the charachter and wonder what will happen to her. I didn't use any speech in my film because I thought that using the music makes the girl more isolate and the soundtrack creates a strong atmosphere, if i gave the charachter a voice it could make her seem like a strong charachter instead of damaged, which would give away the wrong interpretation; also not having an narration lets the audience focus on what is happening and connect with the film more.

 

A cut away shot to the shoes tapping

I have used a wide variety of shots in my film, because typically in thriller films they use a wide variety of shot types. Close up shots are particularly focused on because it gives an uncomfortably close and claustrophobic feeling to the audience and shows them close up what is happening, for example on the face of a character showing the emotion.  The editing in thrillers is also conventionally very fast especially at the start because it builds up the tension before the rest of the film unfolds. I wanted to use this technique in my film, however I also wanted to match the

Pan shot of the derelict looking house

editing to the soundtrack as best that I could because the soundtrack expresses the mood and emotion of the film really well. I used a lot of fast pace editing when putting in the cut away shots, this created the tense and un-natural atmosphere – if these shots were slow it could make the situation seem quite relaxed when really it was tense and stressful on the character. In thriller genres, the characters tend to be in a public setting, for example walking through town or on a busy city street; however I decided to go the opposite direction and put her in a derelict looking house and gravel path next to a graveyard. I did this to reflect the isolation that the character was experiencing and how very alone she was during the whole possession from her shoes. This makes the audience feel for her and become more involved in the film. However in order to fit the thriller genre criteria she did walk down the street in a village, this did help though because it shows that she did connect with “normal” life, and wasn’t always like this.. Which makes the audience then ask questions as to how it happened to her?

For my thriller opening I used the track from Baku by John Atturbery, the track is called “Into the Nightmare” which is also where I got the title name for my film from. The pace of the music was reflected in the film by the pace that the character moved in. The music gave an eerie atmosphere and when put with the film it made lots of tension which is important especially with a psychological thriller, because of this I decided that using this track would be the best option, it fitted my plans perfectly and helped to give ideas for the way I edited.

One of the titles in the opening

The skull and axe props
 

In the production I didn’t use many props, they were really only used in order to set the scene for example; at the “executioners hut” I placed a skull and an axe on the door step giving some hints as to what could be happening to the character in the future another. Another prop that I used was the shoe box that I presented the shoes in; this was red and white in order to mix the destructive connotations with red and the pure innocent connotations of the white. I did this because Josie was playing the character when she was younger before the Red shoes took over, whilst she was an innocent young girl, however including the red ties in what is going to happen to her. I created some titles and added them in throughout the film; this gave some more creativity to the film instead of using the typed titles that were on iMovie. My titles follow the conventions because they show the actors and the title of the film, however I did not put them in the conventional order. In a few of the titles I was able to reflect some of the characters life/emotions, for example I covered Josie’s title in white and grey feathers and blew them off, this reflected the innocence that the character had when she was young (which was when Josie played her) and how quickly it was taken away from her. Another example would be the burning of the paper, the fire reflects the destruction that the shoes have caused for the character, and either take all the destruction away from her or course more harm…this makes the audience ask question.

Coming up with the narrative was difficult, I wanted to do something out of the ordinary but not too much that it didn’t fit with the genre at all and the audience would be attracted to it. I had the idea for the narrative (using the storyline of the red shoes) But it took me a while thinking about how I could put it together and fit in what is needed with a thriller film. Whilst making the film I had to make sure that I was only giving subtle hints as to what the storyline is because it is only a two minute opening and giving too much away would stop it looking like an opening and could possibly push it into the style of a trailer, also it would give all the story away so there would not fit with the task which was only to create the opening.

 

screen grab of the speed during a cutaway

From my research I found that thriller openings edit the shots together using more straight cuts than other techniques, because they make they make the scenes stiff and unnatural because the next shot abruptly comes onto the film rather than fading in. I chose to use straight cuts throughout my opening as this fitted with the conventions, and also because it gave the unnatural effect I was looking for. The editing was fast paced in parts, especially when it was the cut away shots so the use of straight cuts allows the fast pace editing to show through.

 

A sound effect added on

The use of a soundtrack is relied heavily upon in films, especially in the openings because there doesn’t tend to be much speech. The music that I have used gives an eerie effect to the opening and makes the audience feel tense and nervous. Along with the soundtrack I added in some sound effects in selected parts of my film in order to lift those parts from the soundtrack and give some more effect to it. I used effects such as a burning, sizzling acid sound for when it was a cut away shot to the shoes tapping as if they are burning at her feet and character. I also added in a tapping sound which I sped up when showing Mae’s title because it was a louder more distinct sound than what I had caught in the film, it created more tension and put emphasis on the tapping and constant sound, The sound of somebody tapping is often annoying so having this loud and distinct put the audience on edge.

Although it is not from the same subgenre, the film Se7en really inspired the opening because it didn’t give too much of the narrative away, however it did show enough for the audience to get into the film and start to ask questions.

The axe cut away shot

In my opening I used many of the conventions of a thriller and for my chosen subgenre. I used a range of camera angles as the character started her journey, I also used close up shots on her shoes, this is because it gives off an uncomfortable effect to the audience, which needs to be shown as the shoes are not pleasant and she doesn’t want them. I created this effect by the close up shots of them tapping un-controllably, the close up shots give a claustrophobic effect which makes the audience feel trapped, empathising with the character. Also the use of different angles gave the effect that this destruction has been happening over a long period of time. When the older version of the girl was introduced, she had a distinct look of distress on her face and her posture wasn’t as strong as the younger version, this shows from the beginning that this was not a happy tale. I also added in shots showing the character pulling at her tights and shoes trying to get them off.  Using Fast pace editing and straight cuts, especially when doing the cut away shots built up tension and gave the audience different clues as to what is happening. The end of the opening was edited slower, which gave the impression that she had reached her destination and the real in depth narrative was about to start, leaving the audience on a cliff hanger and making them ask questions which is a typical convention to a thriller film. On my shot list it shows different types of shots that I had filmed, this was so that I had a variety of different shots that I was able to work with when editing.  The majority of these close up shots focused on the red shoes as this was the key part of the film. The cut away shots that I used to cut to the red shoes tapping and the axe giving away hints to what could happen, where a typical convention in thriller films. The shots were cut very short, and were like small flashes on the screen. The effect that this created was tension because the audience didn’t get long to concentrate on it; also it was showing small suggestions foreshadowing what would happen if a whole film was to be produced. These shots had sound effects added to them as well in order to lift them from the soundtrack and make them more significant to the audience.  The shots interrupted the journey that the character was on; this helped with the continuity of the film and to stop the walking from becoming too tiresome for the audience. It also added a sense of mystery because the audience never really got to establish her surroundings because after almost all of the cut away shots she would be somewhere new.

 

As I said before the character was in a very isolated setting, however on her journey she does enter more of an open environment which shows that she is still part of the outside world, even though it isn’t busy at all and no other interaction is seen. Down the side of the path there is a graveyard which can be seen in the side of a shot, I didn’t want to focus too much on getting that in the shots because it would give the wrong idea to the audience as she wouldn’t be getting killed (if the film carried on), however I did want hints of it in the background to add to the tension and bring more gloom to the situation.

 

In this shot I wanted to show the expression on her face when she opened the shoes, so the audience could see clearly how happy she was. This will give them a shock when you see the character as an older girl but very unhappy. Using a close up shot allowed the audience to focus on her emotion and not on the environment that she is in. I chose not to use an extreme close up because otherwise the shot could look uncomfortable; also I wanted to still have some of the red coat in the frame so that the connotations of red, such as danger and fear could start to come through. This shot being at the beginning is conventional because it shows the audience who the character is and focuses on her emotions so they can begin to get involved the film now they know the character.



As new actors were introduced in the film there would be cut away shots to their title. My title was first, as part of the establishing shots showing her environment because I was not acting in it, and I thought that putting mine in with the actors would not make sense. I didn’t want to use titles that were part of the editing software as that is quite boring, also by being creative with the titles made my film different and I could make them significant to the film that I was creating. Each title is individual to the person and their character, for example Mae’s title has her feet tapping over the top. The reason that I did that was to reflect that her feet began taking control when the character was older (which is who Mae played), also it is as if the shoes are trying to stamp out Mae’s character and to take her life.

This is a screen grab from one of the cut a way shots to the red shoes tapping. I used the Gorilla tripod to film these shots because it meant I could move it around more freely and get some really interesting shots and angles. The high angle of the shot is ironic because it makes it seem as if the shoes are being looked down upon and aren’t very powerful, yet they are in control of the character. The shoes are also framed to be in the centre of the shot because they are the most important feature and should be concentrated on. I also chose to film these shots on a concrete slab order to have a really plain and light background for the shoes, which makes the red colouring stand out stronger in order for the connotations to come out. The slab still looks like part of the area that the character came from as well so the continuity stays the same.

These two screens grabs show that I kept continuity throughout the film. When I filmed these shots, in order to get the flower in the frame it meant that I had to film from the opposite side, breaking the 180ᵒ rule. So that the rule wasn’t broken in the film, during editing I imported the clip onto QuickTime and flipped it. I filmed these two shots from almost the same distance away but showing a different part of her body, so that the shot would be slightly different (although still the same) which keeps the audience interested. It was important to me that the flower was in the frame because it reflects on the innocence that the character once; had everything else in the background looks old, dark and dead yet that flower stands out beautifully. The fact that she walks straight past the flower is as if she is walking away from her past and is taken away and the purity has been left behind. The flower could also connote that in the end of the film something good may happen to her and she may go back to the innocent child that she used to be. In the shot with the flower, I composed the shot using the golden mean so that when the character walks in to the shot, it is like a diagonal line from the top corner of the flower to the bottom when she walks and straight through her, the flower and the character are the points of interest.

This is the title of the film; the writing is in the centre of the frame to show its importance. The writing is put on the paper at a slant to show the disturbance in the film and how out of the ordinary it is. The back ground to the title is dark, with red on it linking to the red shoes and the connotations; also it looks like blood so foreshadows what could happen. Typically in films the title is in the middle of the frame because that is what is important so this shows that my film has followed the conventions of film openings.

This is a screen grab of her shoes as she leaves the room, the fact that in this shot it only shows her shoes (and the background)connotes that her shoes are the reason that she is leaving, already showing their control. This scene is a mid-shot, so that the audience can see the environment that she is in, but at the same time be able to focus on the main object (her shoes). The background in the shot is the flowery wallpaper; both the carpet and the wallpaper are in a soft cream colour. This makes the room seem like a homely and safe environment, so it makes the audience question as to why she is leaving that… will there be danger? The shot is set up to be floor level, as if it is under her bed. This was because it links back to the day that she found the shoes and as she is walking past the bed it is as if she is walking away from it. Setting the shot up like this also reminds the audience that she was once young and happy with those shoes, so they can see the contrast of to how she is now and empathise on her. When filming this shot I filmed her walking  into it, and made sure that she was out of the room and that the door was closed when she left to save the continuity., she also walked into the shot from the side because she would have come from that way when stood in front of the mirror.

 

 

Q2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Josie Morrison – Karen as a young girl

The first time that Karen appears in my film is when Josie plays her as a young girl. I wanted to make sure that there was a close up shot of her facial expression as this was important to show her happiness and innocence as a child that has been taken away as she got older. Her being at the side of the shot didn’t make the focus go off of her character because she was the only object in the shot; however it did make it seem as if her importance is leaving because something else is going to take over (the shoes).

Josie fits with the conventions in films of the female victim (however at this stage of the film she isn’t “known” as the victim). Josie’s smile being present in every shot that she is makes the connotations of her innocence stronger, which builds up to a bigger shock for when the audience see the distress in her older self. In the panning shot leading to Josie’s feet show her standing in a proud position like a typical young girl admiring herself and her special shoes in the mirror. Because of the genre of film the audience can tell that this will not last, but as the shot pans back up to her being older and distressed by the situation, this contrasts it well.

I dressed Josie in the same way as Mae in order to give a clear connection between them, because they are the same character just at different ages.  I chose to leave the red blanket in the frame of the shots that Josie is in to show that the connections to red has always been in her life, just not as significant until the shoes begin to take over. The bagginess of the Red coat makes her seem more innocent as it reflects on the fact she is still only a child.

 

Mae Morrison – Karen

Mae’s character was portrayed to be frustrated by her circumstances because as she got towards the end of her journey she began to pull her legs trying to get the shoes off. I wanted Mae to be portrayed as if this was a normal situation for her, because she has grown up with it (from when the character was played by Josie as a young girl) however I wanted the hidden frustration to come out, drawing her to the temptation of having the shoes cut off – which is why she is on the journey. I didn’t want to have Mae rushing to the end of her journey, so that it could be portrayed that she was taking calm and collected approach to the situation showing how ready she is for it.

Natalie Portman as the white swan, she is a victim

In the thriller films that I have watched, and in other films in general females are considered to be the innocent and vulnerable character which is why I chose to use her. Typically these characters having long blonde hair like the typical “damsel in distress”, they are tall and delicate which is why I chose Mae to play this role. The typical vulnerable girl also tends to be a young teenager or a young adult, so using Mae fitted the conventions well.

I wanted Mae to wear something red in order to match the colour of the shoes and make the connotations of that colour stand out. I had to choose carefully to make sure that the red didn’t give the impression of Love or Lust so choosing a High buttoned Coat with a floral collar took away the connotation that she was a lustful character. I chose for her to wear black tights to show the insignificance to her legs because the shoes have taken over control, also the colour black implies the darkness that they hold. Mid shots and close up shots focused more on her lower body and her shoes because her identity isn’t as important as the way the shoes have taken over, This creates mystery because although the audience do see her face, they focus more on her lower half and feet so they do not get to know who the character is very well. It reflects on the fact that her shoes have taken over her, stealing the attention from who she is. When the audience did see her face, there were more long shots and mid shots because again her characteristics and person isn’t as “important”, her emotion was still clearly shown though, especially at the end when it was more of a close up shot of her looking through the window at the end of the journey.

When Mae got to the end of her journey and reached the executioners hut she walked past an axe and a skull. These were significant props because it was a last chance to imply where she was and the dangers ahead of her. Her innocence at the beginning of the film, leading to the implications of death and danger at the end shows her vulnerability and allows the audience to feel sympathetic towards her character. At the end she taps on the window with only her finger, this gives a connotation that she is nervous and shy, suddenly all of the darkness and bad in her life is stripped away and the innocent little girl is back. This again makes the audience worry for her safety and want to know what is going to happen.For both of the girls, I asked them to wear very little, just natural make up so that they still looked very young. Blusher was important to use on their cheeks to give them that typical “rosy cheeked” innocent look that is typical to young characters in films.



Natalie Portman as the black swan

The character in my opening could be compared to Natalie Portman’s character in the ‘Black Swan’ (Directed by Darren Aronofsky). Her character is perfect for the lead role of the white swan in “Swan Lake, because of her dancing, and also because of her pure and innocent characteristics, much like the younger version of Karen in my opening. Throughout the film she slowly loses her mind, and as it progresses becomes demonised and much like the Black swan, the deadly version of her original character. In my opening, the innocent character unravels into the distressed girl that has been taken over by her shoes; much like the black swan took over the white. Apart from the psychological transformation and the character match, the character in my opening is different to the black swan because of her appearance. Both girls in my opening were dressed in the same way (unlike the transformation in the black swan where she changed from dressing in white to black). They also had very subtle and delicate make up on to allow the innocence that was once there to come through. The Mise en scene however is quite similar with both my opening and in the film of the black swan; both my characters and the one in the film are in an isolated and run down environment (apart from when she is in the ballet studio) both of which add to the disturbed effect of the film and opening.

Stuart – the executioner

Stuart's Charachter appearance

In my film, Stuart plays the executioner that is only introduced at the end.  I did this so that the Audience would ask questions as to whom this new character is and what he is going to do, it leaves them on a cliff hanger and makes them want to watch more which is what should happen in a successful film opening. 



Stuart’s character needed to be mysterious, so he was filmed in darkness but with the light coming from candles, he was also filmed through a dirty window which put a barrier between him and the audience so they couldn’t get close enough to connect with this character – making him more mysterious. The dirty window also conceals his identity more and gives connotations as to what kind of place he is in.

Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition

When I was planning Stuart’s character I used the character that Tom Hanks plays in “Road to Perdition” (the way he is shown in the picture above). He looks mysterious but as if he means business. The environment that he is in looks dark, but is lit by the street lights, he is wearing long concealing clothing (like Stuart in my film) and his face is not clear.

In thriller films it is conventionally the male that is the “bad guy” or plays the “killer” character, so to support the gender representations I used Stuart. The male gender is typically a lot more powerful and strong than the female characters so already he has the authority over Mae. Also in thrillers these males are either of quite a young age or of an older age for example 40-50. I chose to use Stuart because He is an older adult who makes it seem as if hislot of experience in what he is doing, also because of his age he again has more domination over Mae’s character which adds tension to the film.

The charachter from home alone

As well as wearing dark, big clothing I asked Stuart to leave his face unshaven because it made the character looks more rugged and Un-cared for, I got this idea from the man in home alone that all the children are afraid of because he looks this way, and tales are made up about him. Although his identity is hidden, if this part of his face is clear to the audience through the candle light it would be effective and a good connotation for the audience to see as they try and work out the character. I left Stuart mainly in darkness and used a short shot of him close up at the end so that the film was left in mystery. When filming this I filmed it from the female characters point of view so the audience would feel as if they were in her shoes, having a strange and mysterious man getting closer and closer to you would give an uncomfortable and nervous effect. However if I was to edit the film once more I would prolong this clip, just by another second because I think it moved on a bit too quickly.

In my media product I think that I represented social groups in an effective way. I represented both genders of characters in the typical way for a film and followed conventions well. Using young actors and females as the main character would still appeal to a different range of age groups and people because of the genre of film and the way that it fits with the conventions that are expected of it.

Q3: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

My production ident; "Brian's Brain Productions"



A world famous company that I have researched
"Universal"

I chose to call my production “Brian’s Brain” because it relates to how I managed to work and get the idea to my project because my granddad always told me to “use my brain”, he is always encouraging with my media work so I thought using that as my production name would always encourage me. The ident that appeared at the beginning of my thriller was a straight cut of the ident and I didn’t add any effect to it because I just wanted it to be plain and simple yet memorable because of the unique picture.



I looked at other production companies ident’s to see what the conventions of them are, and for ideas on how to set mine out. I have followed the conventions of an ident because I have included the name of my production and an image, however mine is not animated unlike the majority of other ident’s for example Pixar. Also unlike other ident’s that I have seen through research, mine is a drawing whereas the others are computerised images or photographs. This makes my ident memorable as it is different to the others that are already used, however it still does fit conventions so is easily recognised as an ident.

Production companies are there in order to sell market and produce films. As well as that the production company also help with the budget when a film is being created, they also help to produce the script and scheduling throughout the production. Production companies also are a part of commissioning which director and other crew members such as the camera work are going to be used in the production. Another role that the production companies hold is they get involved during the casting process for actors and what roles they will have in the production.

The rights to films would be owned by the production company that markets and distributes the film, each time the film is watched in the cinema or is sold either on Blu-ray or as a DVD, that Production Company would receive a commission. Advertising the finished film is also another technology that production companies use in order to make money for projects. The money that they earn from each film builds up and becomes a fund for another production and so on.

Paramount Pictures Production ident

“Paramount pictures” was founded in 1912 in Hollywood, Los Angeles. They are the fourth oldest existing production company; in 2012 Paramount Pictures had been in production for 100 years.  I would choose Paramount pictures as the institute to produce and distribute my film as its audience is so wide spread meaning my film would be able to reach bigger audiences. Paramount pictures has set a standard in cinema’s and the way that films have been created throughout the whole world and as one of Americas oldest production companies I think it would distribute my film on a scale that wouldn’t be possible if I used a UK based company. Using Paramount pictures would reach a larger proportion of my target market in a wider spread manor. Paramount pictures is linked with the American media company “Viacom”, this would work to my advantage because the advertisements would be played on the channels on Viacom. This is important because without the correct advertisements a film would not be distributed as well or sold to the target audience. If a film is sold well to the target audience then other demographics gain interest as well.

The famous "Psycho Shower scene"
That paramount didn't want to produce.

Many films have been produced by Paramount Pictures, a number of those being thriller films such as Black Rain and Psycho. Paramount Pictures also market other genres of film such as Sci-fi, comedy, and horror. My production would work well within their company because they have experience with that genre of film, also because they produce a wider genre of films their audience market would be a lot more vast.

The experience that they have with working with thriller films would mean that they would have experience in that field being able to offer advice and expertise in that field. Also being based in such a well-known place (Hollywood) the typical home of film producing the audience would be at such a mass that my film should be successful. The links with the media company Viacom would massively improve the marketing rate of my film meaning it could reach its audience.

The end credit sequence of a film is very important, it is especially important to close it in the correct order. This is the order that a standard film would present their credits:

• Production Ident
• Presents
• Film Title
• Lead Cast
• Supporting Cast
• Casting Director
• Music Composer
• Costumer Designer & Producers
• Editors
• Production Designer
• Photography
• Executive Producer
• Producer
• Writers
• Director

The way that I presented the credits went as followed:

• Production Ident
• Presents
• Lead cast - Josie Morrison, Mae Morrison and Stuart
• Film Title (Into the nightmare)

 

Q4: What would be the audience for your media product?

In order to decide the correct target audience for my film I researched the psychographic groups that people are put into.

By looking at the criteria by the BBFC I feel that the age rating for my film would be a 15, I think that the production is more aimed towards 15-30 year olds because of the subgenre of thriller that it is. I think that the audience would be aimed more towards the female market because they are more likely to sympathise and feel a part of the film because of having a female as the main character. Also although the name doesn’t suggest any gender specifics, because of the narrative being about Red high heeled shoes taking control of a girl, I think the shoes would be more appealing to a female audience.

After researching into psychographics I think that the more likely audience to watch my film would be the Aspirers and the Explorers. This is because the psychographic of aspirers are typically young people/ young adults, so this psychographic would fit in with the age group that I think the film is more suitable for. Also a topic that aspirers are into is fashion and new experiences, so the red shoes would be interesting for people interested in fashion. Explorers are interested in new things, and being adventures so having a mysterious, psychological thriller would be interesting for them to watch. They also like finding new things in life, and are likely to be finding “who they are” so would be trying out different things.

An example result from my questionnaire

 

I handed out questionnaires to 10 random people in order to find out what they look for in a film and if they enjoy them.  I also used this way of research to find out how I should create my film in order to satisfy the audience and what not to do for example, what not to do because it doesn’t create tension well. I created pie charts in order to analyse the statistics that I received in an easier way, I did this by asking closed questions so that the answers would be minimal allowing the statistics to be easily analysed, but sometimes people wanted to give more in depth answers or the answer with a tick box didn’t have an answer that they would have preferred to tick. I didn’t ask a very varied amount of people as I asked people that were in school, I think that I should ask a more varied amount of psychographics next time to get a more varied answer. I could do this by posting the questioner on a social media site such as Facebook, or I could have them available in the shop where I work so that customers could answer them bringing me a wider variety of results. For example my audience said that they preferred to have a plot that they have to concentrate on and was mysterious. This shows that the audience I am targeting enjoy watching this type of film. Because of that result I decided that I would definitely not give much of the narrative away, but the use of cut away shots would give insights into the narrative and what will happen later in the plot for example when I cut away to the shadow of the axe.





The BBFC specifications for a 15 certificate

I have already uploaded my research into BBFC on a separate post on blogger. From that research I have decided that if I were to submit my thriller to the BBFC I would say that it should receive a 15 certificate. This is because my film only implies the violence and wouldn’t go to in depth with the gory details; however it would still show it. Another reason that this would be a suitable certificate is because there are no sexual references either, however there is no speech in my opening so this would not apply to the opening alone, but if the film was to progress there could end up having a use of some mild language meaning that a 15 would be more appropriate. My film also shows a weapon (an axe) and as part of the specification for a rating of 12, a weapon that is accessible should not be shown, there for a 15 would be more of an appropriate rating. Putting the BBFC certification aside I think that the more likely audience would be 15+ anyway because of the psychological nature of the film.

 

Q5. How did you attract/address your audience?

I used my audience research, and the research that I have done into other thriller films in order to create an opening that is appealing to my target audience.

Throughout my thriller opening I used cut away shots in order to build up tension by showing the audience short clips of what could happen later (such as the axe chopping), and others showed uncomfortably close up shots of the shoes tapping which stuck in the audiences mind and trapped them in the film gripping their attention. Another reason that I used cut away shots was to break up the longer scenes of her walking in order to keep the audiences concentration, after almost each cutaway shot she had moved to a different environment so this also sped up the journey whilst keeping continuity. Using cut away shots made the audience focus on the opening more as they are questioning what was going on (such as why was there an axe? Or why are her feet tapping?), this is something that the audience asked for when I handed on the questionnaires. The cut away shots to her feet tapping also attracted the audience because it was a clue as to what was going on, because the girl was walking throughout most of the opening it was not obvious that are feet would be constantly tapping, so the cut away shots bring the narrative to life and engage the audience.



The older version

The younger version

When I received the feedback from my questionnaire the audience asked for a mysterious element to the opening as they preferred films that did not give too much detail away in the opening. This was good because as well as using this element to attract my audience, it fitted with the conventions of a thriller opening by not giving to much of the narrative away. A way of doing this was through the cut away shots but also through the age change from the characters. Through this the audience are able to see that the situation that the girl has been in has been going on for a long period of time, however they have no idea what happened to her during that time. Another way that I did this was in the ending, when the executioner’s character was introduced his appearance was hidden through the window and the candle lights whilst stood in the darkness. Doing this left the audience on a cliff hanger questioning who the character is, leaving them interested and wanting the film to continue.



Throughout the opening, the character seemed very solitary yet strong and aware of what she was doing. I showed this through her body language, by her head looking forward and a straight back. She just constantly looked forward as if looking towards her destination. At the end of the opening she timidly knocked on the window with just her finger. I composed the shot so that she was being looked at from the inside of the window, giving the audience the first clue that someone must be inside. This shot made her seem very vulnerable, and as if the strong girl had disappeared since the start which attracts the audience and makes them empathise for her but at the same time adds the mystery that they desire (as to why she is so nervous, and where is she).

I used a wide variety of shot types to create my opening, but I focused mainly on the use of close up shots.  I used close up shots to show the characters facial expressions to the audience, allowing them to become close to the character and empathise with them. This attracts the audience because they feel like part of the film and become more involved. I also used close up shots to create tension and an effect of chlostrephobia, such as the close ups to the shoes. I did this because the feedback that I received from the audience feedback they seemed to enjoy the dark and fearful thriller films, making them feel tense and full of anxiety.

The audience feedback told me that the use of non-diegetic sounds and sound effect creates the most tension for the audience and puts them on edge. In the “into the nightmare” track, there were a lot of string instruments, which are stereotypical instruments that create tension. Along with this the track sounds as if it has sound effects added into it, because they don’t sound like an instrumental sound. Along with the creepy soundtrack I added some sound effects to the cut away shots in order to lift them up from the rest of the soundtrack and opening film. The sound effects that I used were burning, sizzling sounds that are uncomfortable and make the audience connect with pain, creating tension as they wander whether it is hurting her and burning at her skin and life. Another sound effect that I used was a very fast and loud shoe tapping sound for Mae’s title, this affects the audience because stereotypically a tapping sound is something that irritates people, so this creates tension and puts the audience on edge.

The costume that the character wore was not what is conventional to a thriller film or to the audience, this is because typically the costumes that the psychological victims would wear are dark and plain, yet she is wearing bright red. This tells the audience that her narrative is very different, and also the dangerous and bloody connotations of the red put the audience on edge and make them question what the danger is.

Over all I think that my thriller opening has reached the expectations of my audience. My audience showed that they do enjoy watching thrillers, and the majority expressed that a psychological thriller is the preferred sub genre, so through created this subgenre opening I have already met one expectation of theirs. Another point from their feedback that I tried to focus on was that they preferred an opening to mysterious and not give too much of the narrative away, so when creating my opening I was careful to only give slight hints of the narrative and not give too much of the film away at the start. The audience also stated that the use of non-diegetic sound created the most tension for them, so I created the opening purely with the use of non-diegetic sound, the soundtrack also influenced the shots that I filmed and how I edited them together.

 

The feedback that I received when I posted the final cut of my opening onto YouTube and Facebook was very positive.  A lot of people were able to identify what was happening to her (that her feet wouldn’t stop tapping) and that it was based on the red shoes by Hans Christian Anderson. They commented on the way that it was edited together, that it created tension and made them want to watch more of the film (if it was a full length feature). They thought that the sound track worked well with the film itself and that it added to the “eerie” effect that I was trying to portray. As well as asking questions and giving their own ideas as to how the narrative would unfold, they were impressed with the way that the ending introduced a new character yet cut off very quickly making them want to watch more.