Preliminary Exercise

This task was compulsory for media, our teachers gave us a tutorial, and it enabled us to get more familiar with the equipment, (how to achieve different camera angles and shots). We learnt how to use the Imac computers for editing. Now we are experienced with the equipment, it is going to be easier for my group, to film and edit our 2 minute thriller opening. Also when we finish our 2 minute thriller the exam board can compare the preliminary exercise with the film, this is going to show them how much we have learnt about the film making process and editing, and how far we have come from the exercise.

Analysis of my Preliminary exercise

We used simple basic camera shots. There was a medium shot in the beginning, at the end of the medium shot, Paul accidentally tilted the camera, we tired to cut it out but then the scene was to short to load, so we had to keep it. The scene then dissolves onto a medium shot of Sir walking into the room, as he gets nearer the camera wobbles. It dissolves onto another medium shot of sir sitting down, then pans to the side. When he walks to the front of the classroom his whole body is cut out you can only see his arm. There is a close up shot of me crying, then dissolves onto me looking out the window. You can see half of my head and the field. We found it difficult to shoot, however at the end we got a hold of it. I am sure our final film will have no camera problems.

We should have added music because we cut many things out and the dialogue sounds unusual.

Bourne Identity (2002)

Bourne Identity

I watched this movie at home, it was based on the novel by Robert Ludlum and directed by Doug Liman.

The film is about a man who is found in the sea with bullet wounds on the back of his body . He sufferers from amnesia and tries to find out his identity as well as trying to avoid people who want him dead.

His first clue is the projector of a laser which has the details of a Swiss bank account which is embedded in his hip. Before the movie was made Bourne Identity was a television series.

More Conventions of a Thriller

I have researched further, on thriller conventions, and have identified more conventions, which identify the fact that the film is a thriller film.

• These are the conventions -
  Usually non-diegetic music is used in the beginning of the movie e.g. seven, vertigo, the inside man etc.


• The opening titles, editing cuts are quick e.g se7en.


• The use of colour suggests the themes of the film e.g. red can represent murder/danger.
  


• A crime usually takes place in the narrative.


• Enigmas, Cliff hangers and Red Herrings are used to create more suspense for the audience.


• The film usually starts from the point of view of the protagonist or antagonist.


• The antagonist and protagonist are usually binary of opposition, e.g. In Hannibal there was an inspector and a serial killer.


• Usually identity is questioned e.g North by North West, Bourne Identity etc.


• Usually an innocent protagonist is drawn into a violent, criminal world by the antagonist, or police to go undercover and tackle the evil schemes of the protagonist.


• The protagonist is empowered by the antagonist with weapons and his henchmen - hit man, gangsters etc.


• Voyeurism - watching something when your not supposed to.


• Protagonist has a weakness which the antagonist takes the advantage of.


• Complex dilemma.


• Dramatic irony.


• There is a mystery.

• The editing is quick during the action but slow during the suspense of the film.
  

• The music fits with the scene, in action thriller scenes the music would be upbeat but in suspense scenes the music will be slow and deep.

• If the film was a noir film then the lighting would be dark, there would not be many bright lights or colours. The lighting depends on what effect the director wants to create. Low key lighting contrast dark and light areas known as chiaroscuro, this creates an atmosphere of danger and builds up tension. Back lighting creates silhouettes it gives a mysterious vibe, especially if it is used behind a character. It makes the character look powerful, he can see us (the audience) but we can not see him properly.
  

• The camera work depends on the situation, if car chases are taking place in thriller films then tracking shots are used to follow the action. During fighting scenes the camera usually pans. Point of view shot is effective during running scenes, it builds up tension.
  

Most people ask what are the difference between a murder mystery and a thriller, in a thriller you mostly know who the antagonist is, and you have to tackle obstacles to take him down. But in a murder mystery you do not know who the killer is until the protagonist unravels it.

The narrative of a thriller goes through 4 steps.

In the beginning of a thriller everything is Equilibrium - everything is normal and balanced, then a Disequilibrium occurs - events or actions that occur, to disrupt the balance and normality. Then a Resolution takes place - the problem is solved. Finally a new Equilibrium is established - where everything is normal and balanced again but it is different from the Equilibrium in the beginning.
In North By North West, Equilibrium - Thornhill's life is balanced and normal, Disequilibrium- he is mistaken for his identity, Resolution - he saves Eve, New Equilibrium - his life is normal and balanced but is married to Eve.

Vertigo (1958)

Vertigo

The word vertigo is defined by the Britannica encyclopedia as a 'motion in which the individual or the individual surroundings seem to whirl dizzy.'

This film was directed by Alfred Hitchcocks.

He was the first person to introduce a reverse zoom shot - background comes towards us, then foreground goes down. He achieved this shot by tracking away from the shot of the object while zooming towards the object. Combining these two shots - the zoom in and track out created this effect. It visually makes the audience feel as dizzy as the protagonist.

The film is about a retired detective called Scottie, who is hired to follow his college friend's wife, for her peculiar behaviour. Madeline - his friends wife tries to commit suicide. Scottie manages to save her and they fall in love. She tells him about her bad dreams. He tells her to confront the dreams, so they both go to the location - the church . Suddenly she runs up the stairs, Scottie fails to chase her up the bell tower as he has acrophobia and hears a scream. Madeline commits suicide, later he bumps into a women who looks exactly like Madeline and he find out the who Madeline really is.

Analysis of Vertigo opening titles

The camera fade from black, to a close up of a women lips, the camera tilts up to the nose and eyes. There is an extreme close up shot, of the eye. The image goes red. There is a graphic match of coloured spiral circles. The spirals increase in size, then decreases and fades back into the eye. The spiral image shows the psychological state of Scottie.

The music is suspenseful, it is fast, a deep loud sound is repeatedly occurring and adds to the idea of suspense. The music builds up (gets louder and louder) and changes. The new music is the same pace but has different instruments playing in it. the deep sound repeats. At the end, the music is the same as the beginning.

Se7en - 1995

Se7en

I recently watched this movie over half term, I found it very interesting as it gave me an insight of the murderers psychological state. It is a crime thriller directed by David Fincher who is well known for his thriller films, such as The Panic Room, Fight Club, Zodiac and Killer.

This film explores the psychological state of a murderer, two detectives try to take down a serial killer who kill according to the seven deadly sins; Gluttony, Envy, Pride, Lust, Greed, Sloth and Anger.

Analysis of Se7ven opening titles

The title sequence of Se7en, introduces the psychological mind of a murder. The titles are shaky and words are quickly flashed on the black background. There are close up shots, high angle close up shots, and some panning shots. There are close up shots when the killer is slicing of his fingerprints, this shows that he will go to through extreme lengths, to cover up his tracks. Also it shows he is mentally unstable.

From the sequence, I have gathered that the murderer is researching, from books and newspaper articles. He is very organised, it seems like he is searching for something. There is an extreme close up shot, of the word God being cut out of money, this is very significant, as it conveys multiple meaning such as, the connection of the title - Se7en- the Se7en deadly sins - the money connects to the sin of greed. The colour (green) is also associated with envy. Some Images are red, which contributes to the idea of the 7 deadly sins - sin of anger. It also represents the blood that is going to be shed and how dangerous this person is.

The music is upbeat throughout the opening titles, there are deep notes, and the film sounds scratched. There are sounds of technical cliches. near to the end the music gets faster, and more upbeat. When there is an image of God being cut out, someone sings, 'you bring me close to God.' Thus suggesting the killer is devoted to God.

Target Audience

Target Audience

I wrote a questionnaire, and gave it to 34 people. I calculated my results and put them into a bar chart. (I wrote 9 questions, the questions are written below).

1) Are you male or female?
Response: 17 people who took part in the questionnaire were Male and the other 17 were Female.

2) How old are you?
Response: 8 people from the age of 12-15 and 16-19, took part in the questionnaire, and 6 people from the age of 20-23, 24-27, 27+ took part as well.

3) What types of film do you commonly watch?
Response : From the age group of 12-15, all 8 people, commonly watched thriller films, from the age group 16-19, only 6 people out of 8 watched thriller films. The other 2 people often watch horror. From the age group of 20-23, 4 people out of 6 people often watched romance, the other two people often watched comedy. From the age group 24-27, 3 people out of 6 watched action films, the other 3 watched comedy. From the age group of 28+ 3 people out of 6, watched action the other 3 watched comedy. No one watched Sci-Fi films.

Most people from the age of 12-15 and 16-19, often watched thriller films. This shows that thriller films are popular amongst teenagers. It was mostly popular in the category of aged 12-15, everyone watched thriller films.

4) What is your favourite genre film?
Response: From the age group of 12-15, 6 out of 8 people favourite genre was thriller, the other two people liked horror. From the age group of 16-19, 6 out of 8 people favourite genre was thriller the other tow liked comedy. From the age group of 20-23, 4 people liked action, the other two liked horror. 5 people out of 6, aged from 24-27 liked Romance, One of them liked Comedy. 4 people out of 6, aged from 28+ liked action films, the other two like romance. No one liked Sci-Fi films.

I noticed the older you were the less you liked thriller films. Again thriller films are more liked by 12-15 than 16-19.

5) Do you like thriller genre films?
Response: All 8 people from the age of 12-15 and 16-19 liked thriller films. All 6 people, from the age group of 20-23 liked thriller films. Only 4 people out of 6, aged 24-27 liked thriller films, the other two people did not like thriller films. All 6 people from 28 and above did not like thriller films.

Most ages liked thriller films, apart from two people aged between 24-27, no one aged 28+ liked thriller films. I may consider aiming my film to people aged 15, as the thriller genre is very popular amongst them, and they often watch it as well.

6) What type of thriller sub-genre do you prefer?
Response: Aged 12-15, 1/8 people liked psychological thriller, 7/8 liked crime thriller.
Aged 16-19, 6/8 people liked people liked crime thriller, 2/8 liked religious thriller.
Aged 20-23, 4/6 people liked religious thriller, 2/6 liked medical thriller.
Aged 24-27, 3/6 people liked action thriller, the other 3/6 people liked techno thriller.
Aged 28+, 5/6 people liked crime thriller, 1/6 liked action thriller.

Most people from ages 12-15 and 16-19, liked crime thriller, fortunately most of my initial ideas were a part of that sub-genre.

7) What typical conventions do you expect from a thriller film?
Response:Aged 12-15, 4/8 people expected fast pace action, the other 4/8 expected car chases.
Aged 16-19, 6/8 people expected car chases, 2/8 expected fast pace action.
Aged 20-23, 4/6 people expected SFX, 2/6 expected dramatic irony.
Aged 24-27, 3/6 people expected SFX, other 3/6 people expected an obvious antagonist.
Aged 28+, 2/6 expected an obvious antagonist, 4/6 expected dramatic irony.

I learnt teenagers, , expected fast pace action and car chases, I would want my thriller film to be fast pace and involve cars, so I can appeal to this audience.

8) What would engage you in a thriller?
Response:Aged 12-15, 6/8 said the storyline would engage them, 2/8 were engaged by music.
Aged 16-19, 6/8 said the storyline would engage them, 2/8 were engaged by music.
Aged 20-23, 4/6 said the actors/acting would engage them in a thriller, 2/6 were engaged by mystery.
Aged 24-27, 3/6 people were engaged by enigmas, the other 3/6 people were engaged by the mystery.
Aged 28+, 2/6 people were engaged by the actors/acting, 4/6 people were engaged by the enigmas.

Most teenagers, (12-15, 16-19), were engaged by the storyline and music, I think my storyline is different and unique. Everyone expects that Sara is a normal girl, but they are in for a surprise. This will add suspense to the film and will attract them to my thriller film. I would make sure the music is flows with the scenes.

9) What would appeal to you in a thriller?
Response: Aged 12-15, 4/8 were appealed by the storyline, the other 4/8 people were appealed by the suspense the thriller created.
16-19, 4/8 were appealed by the storyline, the other 4/8 people were appealed by the suspense the thriller created.
20-23, 4/6 people were appealed by the cliff hangers, 2/6 were appealed by the crime.
24-27, 3/6 people were appealed by the non-diegetic and diegetic sounds, the other 3/6 were appealed by the crime.
28+, 4/6 people were appealed by the cliff hangers, 2/6 were appealed by the sounds.

Again most teenagers (12-15, 16-19), thought the storyline would appeal to them and the suspense created. I would make sure suspense is created through the mis-en-scene. I would make sure you can not see the full face of the gangster, this will add suspense by making the audience question his identity, who is he? This will be mysterious, also I will edit some scenes in black and white, this will create a dark atmosphere in the film.


The British Board of Film association rate British films. My film is aimed at an audience who like thriller movies. It would target people from 15 to 18, but I would precisely aim it at the certificate audience of 15. I would limit the sexual scenes and inappropriate language. There still would be a lot of violence. I have decided to aim my film at this audience, from the results of the questionnaire the thriller genre is mostly popular around them. If my film is shown on television, I will make sure it is on after the watershed (9:00pm), as I do not want young children to be affected by the violence scenes.

This focus group helped my group understand what an audience wants from a thriller. Their opinions on why not, or why they like thriller films. The males enjoyed a thriller with explosions, fast pace music and car chases. The girls rarely watch thriller films. They were more interested in social realism. There were no microphones available, as students were using them, therefore there is a buzzing sound in the background, but you can clearly hear their responses to the questions.

From this focus group I learnt that thriller films are more popular to males than females. The SFX attracts males to the genre. They especially like conspiracy films - The Manchurian candidate. The girls also like conspiracy films, Aicha really likes Alfred Hitchcock films. I also learnt that some people may find the thriller genre confusing, Jaye was not sure if the last film she watched was a thriller. This has showed me that I need to include most thriller conventions, so it is obvious to the audience that my film is a thriller film.

♫ Diegetic, Non-Diegetic sounds, Sound Bridges, Parallel and Contrapuntal Sounds ♫ (Pre production process of sounds for my film)

The word Diegetic means sound within the world of text, non-diegetic means the world of the text.

Diegetic sounds

Diegetic sounds are sounds that are apart of the film, it comes from the source of objects or people, e.g. Dialogue, kettle boiling, or music from a radio. It can occur off screen, (we do not see where the sound is coming from) or on screen (we know where the sound is coming from).

Non-Diegetic Sounds

Non diegetic sounds are sounds that the character cannot hear, the audience does not know where the source of sound is coming from, e.g. background music, narratives voice.

Sound Bridges

Sound bridges are when music or sounds continue into the next scene. It creates smooth transitions from scene to scene.

Parallel Sounds

Parallel sounds are sounds that match a scene, e.g. a happy scene will have happy music and laughter.

Contrapuntal Sounds

Contrapuntal sounds are sounds that do not match the scene, e.g. a happy scene will have sinister music. This is effective as the audience immediately know something bad is going to happen.

Hopefully in my film i will include a variety of diegetic sounds, non-diegetic sounds, sound bridges, so the scene can flow through well, and parallel or contrapuntal sounds in my film when it is appropriate.