Planning for a Thriller: Conventions of a thriller opening

Thriller Conventions:

Camera Work:

Typical shots:
Establishing Shots – to show where the events are taking place
Mid shot- for characterisation
Close up- disorientation and reflect claustrophobia

Composition/framing:

Show lots of props and lots of the setting
Create suspense; use framing to cut out certain objects

Camera angles:

High angle shots are used a lot to show power and status of a person or object

Use of perspective:

First person is used to show what the character sees, makes the audience empathise with the character.
Third person is used to show a person’s body language and face.

Editing

Typical transitions:
Fast editing; straight cuts can create pace which creates tension and disorientation in the scene.

Used to structure:

Dual narrative is used to create a complex narrative; it also causes tension when they come together
Flashbacks create a visual connection, they show key moments in the past and can be matched to the present.

 

Thriller opening conventions
How thrillers start:
·         Drama which causes tension
·         Use of music

 Titles:

Name of the film (but usually comes last)
Names of the actors, directors, company name

 First two minutes:

·         Music
·         Something gripping and a little confusing
·         Not too much dialogue, better if there is none at all
·         A significant event
·         Create atmosphere

 Sound:
How is it used (diegetic/non diegetic):
Not a song as such just a lot of ambient sounds that complement the atmosphere.

The use of dialogue:

The uses of a voice over to create a back story, but avoid using dialogue in an opening.

Mise en scene

Setting is realistic and isolated
Costume is normal day to day, very realistic clothing so that they blend in
Actors, the male seems to be the protagonist and the female seems to be the victim. There are also usually police officers.
Props are very realistic, like knives or guns.
There is always a direct light source, and there are shadows etc.

Narrative:

It is very disorientating; the film starts half way through the event. It makes the audience ask questions and instantly gets them hooked on it.
The audience are only introduced properly to the main characters.
In the opening you don’t want to tell the whole story, just introduce the audience to the plot.

 Subgenres:

·         Action thriller
·         Crime thriller
·         Psychological thriller
·         Conspiracy thriller
·         Medical thriller
·         Disaster thriller
·         Religious thriller
·         Eco thriller
·         Dystopia

 
 

Thriller Prelim: Kidnapp

We were given the task to create a prelim for our thriller before we were able to create the real piece of work. The task was that we had to create a clip that was at least one minute, holding a conversation that kept to the 180 degree rule. During our piece of conversation we also have to consider the shot reverse shot that is typical when filming a conversation. This is where the camera will look at whoever is doing the talking, This shot can also be filmed as an over the shoulder shot.

This is one of the Stills from the start of the clip. We used a medium shot so that we could show the audience who the characters are, the emotions on their face and the setting that they are in. We could have done a close up to introduce the characters face better but if we did that then the audience could feel uncomfortably in their space which wouldn't have given the correct meaning. Also in this part of the clip not a lot has happened so their isn't much expression to show, making a close up shot unnecessary.

we changed the colour of the freeze frame for each character, this separated each of them and emphasized the difference in character and situation. We also chose to use the three primary colors; Red, Green and Blue to emphasize that these characters are important.



This shot is the cross between a Long shot and a medium shot, it shows one character pulling along another. The male character is much taller and is the more central of the two in this shot, this shows his dominance over the girl. The lighting in shot and the way that the corridor looks as if it gets smaller towards the end gives this scene the effect that the struggle goes on forever, and she is trapped. This lets the audience sympathies with the girl and grips them to the story line making them wonder what is going to happen.

During this shot the camera zooms into the watch and then zooms out again but with a different character and in a different setting. This foreshadows that these two characters are both aware of the time, the watches connect them both together and make it clear to the audience that they may be waiting for something to happen. Also checking the watch could imply a sense of anxiety from the characters as if they are nervous about the upcoming events or as if something is late happening, this makes the audience nervous and gets them gripped into what is going to happen next.

when looking back at our footage and the clip that we created we noticed that the lighting in this part is not particularly good, as some of the watch is clear and another is not so much as it is in the dark, this makes it seem as if part of the hand/watch is more important but it isn't at all. also there is a reflection on the wrist of the watch. This has helped us to realize how important lighting is and we will take more thought in it for our actual piece of work.

For this scene we used a long shot so that we could get both of the characters in and also the setting, getting the setting in the frame was important as the audience haven't been introduced to this scene yet. It also forshadows that some events are going to happen here. Using CCTV effects we thought would be effective as it gives reason to the high angle shot we used, also it makes it seem as if the people are being watched which could add a mysterious effect to the scene.

Overall I think that our prelim worked quite well for the time and equipment that we had. We used a variety of shots, but mainly the medium shot. We also stuck to the task criteria and held a conversation with the 180 degree rule. However at one point (when the male walked into the meeting room) we did break the 180 degree rule, this was pointed out from the review from our class. This has shown us just how easy it is to mess something up during filming and has taught us that for our actual thriller piece to have it a lot more well thought out.
We did use different types of angles, which was good as we learned how to set them up and work with them during editing, however we could have used some more to put more emphasis on the scene and what is happening, for example to make characters or settings seem more dominant than another.
The lighting was a problem with some parts of the clip, we have decided that for our thriller piece where we need light we will fix the lighting so that there are not unwanted shadowy patches and that it is more appropriate for the scene and setting.
Through this task we have learned many things as a group. We have learned how to edit and how to set up a film. Doing this has given us the opportunity to explore the different routes we could take when we film for our Thriller opening and has shown us what kind of thing works well and what doesn't.  From doing this task I think that the main areas to improve on would be the lighting and settings, to make sure we have enough footage incase scenes don't work during editing (we experienced having a lack of footage during the money swap, this was our biggest fault in the clip). We also need to concentrate on the 180 degree rule and making the film run smoother. Other than that, the prelim was a great and well needed experience into making a thriller. 

Shot Plan:

Story Board: 

Class Reviews:

 

 

 







Analysis of "No country for Old men" introudction - Stills

This is an extreme long shot to introduce the audience to the setting. This shot shows the audience that they are in a barren landscape and there is no one there to help, this puts the mood on edge even as the film has only just started.

This is a long shot, this shot type is used in order to show the characters in their setting. Their backs are to the audience, which adds mystery as you can see that one is definitely a sheriff, and the other is clearly a "bad guy" but the audience can't see who he is. Steriotypically the audience would think that the sheriff is most powerful, but in this scene both the characters are the same height, making neither more powerful. This frightens the audience as they are now aware    that  the "bad guy" could be capable of quite a lot.

This is a close up shot of a compressor, the reason that it is a close up is to show the audience that it is an object of importance and that it takes up most of the frame. Also this shot has been composed using the golden mean, with all of the parts of the compressor appearing down the imaginary "line", again expressing the importance of this object.


 This shot is a mid shot showing the character in his setting. The Mysterious villain is behind bars again, telling the audience that he is dangerous but still  hiding his identity. This shot has all been composed so that the villain is sat in the shadows and the sheriff is in the light expressing his authority and that he is the "good guy"

This is a long shot to show the area that the characters are in. This shot looks as if they are on the road to nowhere, as the landscape is very bleak.. This makes the audience feel the tension as the characters are so alone, what would happen if something went wrong?
This shot is composed to only show straight down the road and slightly to the side, almost as a point of view from the car or the driver, this gives the effect that they are just trying to get somewhere and that the landscape of the journey isn't nearly as important as the destination.

This is a mid shot of the sheriff on the phone. The shot is composed with him in the middle of the frame as he is supposed to be the audiences focus point, there is also a figure standing behind him, but slightly to the side- this gives him his own bit of focus even though he is at the back this foreshadows that is the dominant character ad has the capability to take over anything. This creates tension as the audience can see what is going on behind him but he can't, the sheriff has his head held high because he is used to being right and being in charge, but this is going to be turned upside down - which makes the audience more wherry of the character they still haven't met. The lighting in this shot shows the mysterious and dangerous character in the back, and the sheriff in the light to symbolize his authority, just like they did in the scene where they were in the sheriff's car.

This shot is seen at floor angle, so the audience can see the struggle but it isn't as violent as it good be. The effect that this has on the audience is that it becomes very chaotic as the audience can't see much of what is happening which puts emphasis on the struggle.

This shot gives the audience a birds eye view of the action, and the expression on the characters faces. This shot also shows the audience the villain for the first time, when he is proving how dangerous he is and his dominance over everything. The composition of this shot shows the characters head almost in a diagonal line from each other, which tells the audience that they are both as important in these scene because they don't know who is going to win the struggle. The birds eye view also allows the audience to see more emotion, more of the struggle and more of the violence.

This shot is a close up on the key character, he has finally been properly introduced the audience. He has gone from the shadowy mysterious character to someone who is clearly a villain and the audience has seen what he is capable of.

This is a birds eye view shot so that the audience can observe exactly what the villain is doing, possibly in order to understand what he does. His character is cool, calm and collected, the birds eye view doesn't allow the audience to see him, just his after effects. The fact that he stays so calm shows that he must have done it before. The shot is composed with the handcuffs in the middle making it clear to the audience that he is now free, making the audience worried for what he could do next. his bloodied wrists are placed diagonally either side of the handcuffs, as they are also important features to this shot; it shows the audience just how much pain he is willing to go through in order to kill.

This is another birds eye view shot, to again show the effects or the villains actions. This shot shows exactly how much of a struggle it was for the sheriff. The struggle marks imply that the villain doesn't care how much of a struggle situations are, he will finish what he started and kill.. This un-nerves the audience because this is only the start of his killings, where does he stop?

Detailed analysis of the opening of Piranha 3D - Alexandre Aje

The Opening sequence of Piranha 3D (directed by Alexandre Aje), starts of by showing what production company made the film. The way that they have created their logo makes it look as if it is underwater, which works well and reflects the film as it is about being in the sea and piranha’s attacking.

During the opening they have used Non-diegetic sounds of the Piranhas making noises. This unnerves the audience because normally we can’t hear them above the water and it makes them feel uncomfortably close to the dangerous creature. The audience will also begin to ask questions as to why the Piranhas are making those noises and what is going to happen.

There is an extreme long shot; this is used to show the audience the location of which the action is going to take place. The use of this extreme long shot also shows the audience how much of an open and rural environment that it is, with all the rocks. The camera begins to pan around the location to give the audience more of an insight into the surroundings. Showing the Location in this way gives the feel of solidarity and that people may be quite alone, this worries the audience because they begin to link this to the piranhas activity and wonder what will happen to the alone people if something goes wrong. To add even more to this part of the opening, they added an ambient soundtrack which emphasizes the wilderness that the characters are in, this makes the audience empathize with their welfare and become more engaged in the film.

The mise-en-scene also helps to create an atmosphere for the film. There is a sign saying “STOP restricted access” that is hanging of the fence. Just the sign alone makes the audience feel as if they are intruding, but it also makes them ask even more questions as to why they are there even when they shouldn't be. A spooky atmosphere is created, making the audience feel haunted as non-diegetic sounds have been added to give the effect that the sign is banging on the fence. The audience become curious as to what is behind the fence, so they want to keep watching the film in order to find out.

As this shot begins to pan to one side we can hear the sound of metal scraping together. This is typically used in thriller movies as it is a simple yet effective way of unnerving the audience through spooking them and making them ask questions. In this shot particularly there is a scrap of cloth hanging from part of the fence, this makes the film become more real to the audience as we now know that there must be a human character, whether they are alive or dead we don’t know. This part of the opening creates a sense of confusion and the audience begin to wonder who was trying to enter and why, or what was trying to escape, and why?

The opening then cuts to a lizard moving a long, the camera slowly starts to zoom in on it as the soundtrack of a violin begins, which builds up tension in this situation. A lot of people have phobia’s of creatures like lizards and snakes, if not then they aren't considered to be particularly pleasant and positive animals like a cat or a dog, so this connotes that the place that the audience are entering is not particularly positive either. The lighting that is used in this particular part of the opening is quite low key, which is used a lot in thriller films as it creates shadows which makes the film (in this case opening) more mysterious.

In the opening, they also use the sounds of an eagle to create more of a wilderness type atmosphere, it makes the location seem more deserted and spacious, and as if there could possibly be some kind of death either that has already happened or is going to happen. But reflecting on the extreme long shots of the beautiful location the audience really just get a picture of where they really are going to be in the film, the opening in Piranha is very vague and is just there really to start the audiences minds off and get them thinking of what is going to happen.

Se7en - Opening Credits

Detailed Analysis of the opening of Se7en - David Fincher

In the opening of Se7en (Directed by David Fincher), has an extremely mysterious opening, by doing this the audience don’t get given much information, they don’t even know what the main character really looks like or what they do. The way that they have done this in the film is by using close ups and extreme close up shots, focusing on certain parts of characters; such as their hands. They didn’t use many mid shots or long shots at all in the opening as it would give too much of the film away. Doing that would defeat the objective of what they are trying to create with the opening sequence which is to entice the audience and get them to ask questions. The use of dark shadows during the opening, emphasises that there is going to be lots of mystery and secrets, it also reflects on the hidden identity of the characters. Throughout the opening they use a low and dark setting; this creates a cold and isolate ambience for the film and gives it another boost of mystery. From the opening the audience get the feeling that the character may not want to be known, which makes them question what is going on and adds tension from the start. They do this through using a setting that does not show any sign of natural lighting really at all. The colours that are used also reflect on the dangerous and mysterious vibe that the opening gives off as the use lots of Red and blacks.

The opening sequence of Se7en include lots of props that associate with death and  get the audience questioning what has gone on. There are photographs of deaths, and objects such as razors which may get the audience thinking that this person could have either already committed a murder or is in the process of planning to commit on. During this part of the opening, it gives the audience a clue that maybe this character is going to be the antagonist of the film.

There is an unorganized and manic feel that comes from the credits in the opening as they are quite displaced over the film and makes the audience fell quite disorientated. The way that this has been done could reflect on the personality of this character, suggesting that maybe that have some kind of disorder or that they could be under the influence of something like drugs. The editing and camera work does support this as sometimes it looks as if the camera is seeing double (as if it is a point of view shot) and the editing flickers slightly (as if the person is tripping or is going to black out) - This suggests that the character is not in the right frame of mind and is not your average person.

The Non- Diegetic sound that is used throughout the opening of Se7evn picks up a faster pace towards the end; this reflects on the unsettled and manic mind that the character may possess. The sounds that we hear during this sequence are not comfortable to hear, they are quite eerie and scratchy, which reflects on the un-comfortableness of the situation and what must be going on.

The editing does cut through scenes a lot which gives the audience an insight into lots of the characters life although they are yet to find out who it actually is. The cutting shows that the character may have no control over what is going on, and is disturbed just like the deaths that we are shown. All of this corresponds well with the fast pace sound track that is played during the opening, which then fades out to create more of a mysterious atmosphere for the audience and keeps them wanting more.

Analysis of "Se7en" introduction - Stills

This is a close up shot of a Gun, Notebook, Pen knife, police badge and a pen. The objects are neatly set out on a bench, this shows that whoever these objects belong to is very well organised. It also connotes that the character is used to doing what they do and is perhaps a bit too organised, which could be either quite disturbing to the audience or it could make them feel safe, depending on how the story unravels.

 This is a mid shot at ground level of a dead body on the floor. It is very dark in the room emphasizing the eerie atmosphere,but there is a bit of natural light from the window shining onto him. The darkness also makes the scene mysterious, setting up the crime and thriller genre of the film.

This is a long shot in an outdoor setting. Because this shot is in an outdoor setting the audience would expect relief with the lighting but it is still quite dark, this foreshadows the events and that this place isn't very nice.
The setting is dark and gritty with police tape as the only bright thing in this shot, making it even more obvious that this place is not somewhere that you would want to be.





This is a mid shot of one of the inspectors. He is chewing gum, not neatly shaven and is wearing a leather jacket showing that he is very laid back and perhaps showing that he is less experienced.
The way he speaks in this scene is in a naive way, it doesn't fit well with the organised characteristic shown at the start of the film.






This is a mid shot of Morgan Freeman's character, He is a dressed as a typical inspector so it is obvious to the audience who he is. This shows that he means business, and is more experienced than his partner. The way that this shot is composed, he is stood in the shadows and out of the light, telling the audience that maybe he is the darker and more mysterious of the two.





This is a mid shot/same shot showing the two character working as a team. The shot type lets the audience compare how different they are in the way they are dressed and the way that they are standing, it also shows the irony because the way that they are acting makes it look as if they aren't very connected.
The lighting in this scene is still only natural and is quiet dark, also the pathetic fallacy of the rain goes with the sadness and mystery of the death.




This is a close up shot focusing on the metronome that the inspector uses in order to go to sleep.
The ticking of the metronome is the focus point of both the camera and the sound, which is significant to telling the audience about the character and possibly his mental state. This scene shows that his work life may be stressful, -which emphasizes the murder and its mystery,- so he needs to use this in order to filter everything out and be able to relax.



During the titles the scenes look in on the life of the killer. The whole way through the titles the lighting is very dark which makes the whole film seem like it is shrouded with mystery.
During the titles the audience don't get to see allot, which again adds to the mystery, but their is a lot of black colours and blood stains being focused on by the camera.
In this particular shot it looks as if it is a point of view shot of somebody looking down the stairs, which makes it feel as if somebody is watching from above, creating tension and making the audience feel quite self aware.

This is an establishing shot of the area that the events may be taking place in. This shows there are lots of high buildings, in quite a suburban area;  This means there could be a lot of dark, unknown alley-ways creating more hidden area's for the mysterious and deadly events.
The title shows the date, this helps the audience track the events, also because Monday is the start of a new week it connotes as if this is the starting point for an event, letting the audience follow it from the very beginning as if they are an detectives as well.



This is a floor level shot, the audience aren't able to make out what anything is. This shot makes it seem as if the audience can see just as much as the detectives, making them ask questions and getting them engrossed into the film by re-emphasizing that the audience become the detectives.

This is a mid shot, of a dead man.  Its quite a grotesque image and the fact that his face is in his food shows that there was no special act to his death, he was just simply killed, making the audience think more about the reasons behind it.









 This is a close up of the older detective (Morgan Freeman). The reason that the close up is used is to show the audience the concern and difficulty of his job. The close up puts the audience in his personal space, as if they are part of him and his journey throughout the investigation. His face in the middle of the frame, to give his expression the full focus of the scene. Also the background is blurred out making sure that nothing detracts from the detective in this scene.

This is a close up shot, yet still very obscured by the lighting. The light is behind the mans hands that are bound together (they are also in the middle of the frame) in order to show that they should be the audiences focus. This could also be to emphasizes that this is one of the clues, that the detective is putting the pieces together in the investigation.

 This is a mid shot of the older detective (Morgan Freeman) doing his job. His facial expression is in the center of the frame, with the light of the torch showing the audience what he looks like. From this shot you can tell that nothing phases him, he just seems to be getting on with his job which like the beginning shows his experience.

Analysis of Psycho shower scene.

Analysis of ‘Psycho’ shower scene, exploring how film techniques are used to create effects

 In this scene of Psycho we are introduced to a woman in her most vulnerable state, alone and naked in a small bathroom. The audience are not shown a long shot so are not familiar with the setting making them feel intruders themselves, looking at an unfamiliar room with a vulnerable naked woman. There is a long shot of the bath curtain, creating a clear barrier between the woman and the bathroom, which later gets viciously pulled away by her killer.

 Close up shots are used a lot in this scene to show the emotions of the victim during her murder. The use of Close ups also express the claustrophobia that the victim would have felt, being trapped in a confined environment with no escape from her death.

Before her murder there is a cantered angle shot of the victim undressing to get into the shower. The fact that she will have no clothes on shows her vulnerability already, but the cantered angle shot disorientates the audience adding tension and foreshadowing that something abnormal is going to happen to her.

As the murder draws closer the victim is in the middle of the shot, and it gradually pans across to the killer making him now the centre of attention, this is a 3^rd person shot and effects the audience because they feel as if they are actually in the room with her. The use of the water from the shower disguises the killer from both the audience and the victim adding mystery and tension to the scene. The use of Point of view shots from the victim are effective as the camera angle makes is seem as if the knife is pointing directly at the audience, letting them take her character and engrossing them into the scene. As the murder takes place the camera angle changes to be high up expressing the killer’s domination over the victim and again making her seem as vulnerable as possible.

At the end of the murder extreme close ups are used to create a graphic match of  the retina of the victims dying eye with her blood draining down the plug. Extreme close ups are rarely used but are used to emphasise the dramatic moments and creates tension within the scene. The match of the plug hole with the victim’s eye shows the audience the scale of the attack and symbolises that her life has just drained away as quickly as her blood went down the plug. Throughout the extreme close up the shot is revolving, this type of camera work disorientates the audience and keeps them fixed watching the amount of blood mixing with the water and washing away. Using this emphasises the mass of the attack, it also shows the calm that has entered back into the room (through the revolving view of the swirling water) now that the killer has left and leaves the victim at peace.

 Throughout the murder the camera switched to show the thunder storm outside of the hotel, this pathetic fallacy was used to represent the storm that was going on inside the building and inside the killers messed up mind. The editing used between the storm and the murder made the shower water blend with the rain from the storm making the weather mix with the events.

Before the murder took place the editing pace was slow, as if it was relaxing like the audience would expect a shower to be. This made the atmosphere of the scene quite calm so that the murder would impact the audience on a greater scale. The editing pace sped up during the murder; this shows the audience the action, tension and abnormality of how fast situations changed. If the editing during the murder was slow then the impact wouldn't be the same as it wouldn't follow the ferocity or speed of the attack.

 The diegetic sound of the shower remained all the way through the scene, the noise from the shower was so loud that it emphasizes the victim’s lack of awareness that there was a stranger in her bathroom. The editing between the storm and the Murder added non diegetic sounds of thunder, which echoed the trauma that was going on inside the hotel. As the victim’s life drifted away there was a re verb on the water draining, this echoed the fact that she was dying.

This is a point of view shot, from the victim’s point of view. This makes it seem to the audience as if the killer is looking straight at them creating tension and sympathy towards the victim.
The face of the killer is in the middle, meaning it should be the focus in this shot, however the shower water is in focus and has masked the killer behind it adding mystery, as not even the audience can see who the killer is. The costume isn’t extravagant or as if the killer is in any attempt to mask himself so it seems as if there may be some kind of mental illness involved, also the sleeves of the shirt are rolled up giving the impression that the killer means business. The knife is held high showing its dominance and that it is going to cause a lot of harm. The way that this shot is composed, leaving the bathroom setting out and focusing on the knife makes the scene tenser because the audience can’t see the setting that they were introduced. This makes them feel just as trapped as the victim. Also in the composition, the audience can just make out that the bathroom door is now open in the background, showing the entrance of the murderer and that they aren't bothered about closing the door on the murder, they just wanted to walk in and kill.

This is a low angle shot showing that the victim is looking up at the knife is helpless and the knife has domination in this scene. The composition has put the knife in the middle giving it all of the audience’s attention. The way this shot is composed puts the audience in the position of the victim as the only thing they can see is a point of view looking up at the knife, just like the victim herself. This grips them into the action and causes more tension in the scene.



The Notes I made whilst watching this scene before I analysed it: