Survey into thriller movies and analysis of the survey

This is a sample of our questionnaire

Analysis of the survey

Do you like Thriller Films?

Shooting Script

Shooting Script

This is our shooting script that the cast will be following.

Film Treatment

Film Treatment

This is a film treatment and this was written by Anna-Lusia. A film treatment is a brief summary of a film and in this case, it is a brief summary for our thriller opening.

StoryBoard

Background Information about our Film

For our thriller opening, it will be set in a dark forest specifically when the sun sets. I think this is a good time to set our thriller opening because when there is dark setting, it sets the mood of tension straight away and that was my target. The reasons why I chose to set our thriller opening to be in a dark forest because it immediately denotes to the audience about the setting which have an effect on them of giving them reasons to think that something bad is going to happen because stereotypically, something dreadful happens in a dark forest.

Section 1

In this section, there would be a point of view shot of Pixie running and an Ariel shot of her feet running. The purpose of a point of view shot is for the audience to see Pixies point of view of while she is running and for the audience to be in Pixie’s position. While Pixie is running, she would be saying her dialogue. There would be diegetic sound of Pixie breathing heavily. I think this is effective because it denotes that she is already in trouble and this allows the audience to feel tense. In addition, Pixie breathing heavily creates even more tension because it shows that she is scared.

Section 2

The Credits will come on at this section. Whilst the credits are playing, there will be no sound at all. This is effective because it creates even more tension when there is no sound so this affects the audience by leaving them to be curious.

As group, we was looking at the different types of fotns we could use for our thriller opening. However, as a group we decided that this is the font type we would want to use but not in that firey cloud effect. This is an example of what our typography will look like in our thriller opening. However, I think the colour red is sutiable, but i will prefer to use the colour purple as it is one step above the colour red and the colour red symoblises danger so therefore, purple connotes that it is even more dangerous

Section 3
Pixie is still running in the woods all scared. This creates even more tension because her breathing becomes even heavier and this affects the audience because the audience may think that she might pass out. On my questionnaire, most people voted for ‘Edge of Seat’. So by Pixie doing her heavy breathing, the audience may be at their ‘Edge of Seat’.

Section 4

Then the typography will appear again. Like before, no sound will be played while any credit is being played on the screen.

Section 5

In this section, the audience is now going to see the mysterious man Rick. We are going to present Rick in the film through an Arc Shot and Mid-Shot. This is effective because the audience will be able to identify Rick’s body however his face will not be revealed as much. This is good because the audience will feel tense because they will not be able to see Rick’s face so therefore he would be left anonymous. While the Arc shot occurs, their will be diegetic sound of Pixie breathing heavily. This is effective because it duplicates the tension. The diegetic sound of her breathing heavily adds on another layer of tension because the audience will be able to hear hwe breathe and this will make the audience feel even more tense.

Section 6

As above, when the credits are being played, there will be no diegetic sound and the typography will be played in silence and in section 6, this will be the last time the credits will appear.

Section 7

In this section, the two characters would be presented through an over the shoulder shot. This is good because the two characters will still be in the frame and we still want Rick to be anonymous. Furthermore, the props in the Mise En Scene will be shown which are the trees and crunching leaves. After the over the shoulder shot, the camera will be following Pixie while she is running. This is effective because the audience will be able to follow Pixie as well and this would make them feel like they are following Pixie too.

Section 8

In this section, Pixie’s dialogue is longer. This is effective because the audience will hear more from Pixie and if the audience hears more from Pixie they can get more information about this character. While Pixie is saying her dialogue, there would be diegetic sound of the leaves and her breathing. The leaves are a symbolic code of Pixie which connotes her going to being crushed by Rick. The leaves will be presented through a close up shot. This is effective because audience will see the importance of the leaves and that the leaves symbolises Pixie.

Section 9

In this section, the frame would be black and while the frame is black, there woul be non-diegetic sound of Pixie screams. This is effective because the climax of the tension has come to an end. Furthermore, having a black screen will have an effect on the audience because the audience will be curious about Pixie and where she has disappeared too and why she has screamed. The non-diegetic sound of Pixie breathing will create even more tension because the audience will want to know if she is dead or alive.

Detailed Reasearch of Thriller Films and General research into key features of thriller genre

Thriller is a genre which includes a numerous of overlapping sub-genres. Thrillers are usually seen by fast pacing action and some sort of hero and most thriller films usually includes a powerful villain.

The key films of the thriller genre are:

Fight Club

Rear Window

The Dark Knight

Fight Club

In Fight Club, the credits of the opening gets broken up. This is a technical code of the typography and the typography being broken up connotes people being broken up physically and this links in with the film title ‘Fight’. There is non- diegetic sound of someone screaming. This technical code is used in many thriller or horror films to tell the audience that they should be scared and its a warning for the audience denoting that something bad is going to happen. Furthermore, the technical code of dark lighting is used in the same way in all film genres and it is a convention of the thriller genre to display the mysterious atmosphere to the audience.

Rear Window

In the film ‘Rear Window’ the opening has non-diegetic sound of technical music. Non-diegetic sound of music is used very similar in many different film genres. For this film, there was a trumpet being played. This makes the opening of the film seem very mysterious. Furthermore, it sets the mood of the film.

The typography is written in red. This is a symbolic code of danger and warning and it connotes that danger and warning. This affects the audience because the audience should be aware that something dangerous is going to happen.

There is an establishing shot of the setting. This allows the audience to get an idea of the setting and in the extreme long shot, there was two characters kissing at a window and a man was watching the two people kiss. This allows the audience to get the full picture of the two characters. Furthermore, this is effective because it allows the audience to be in that character position so they can see what he is seeing . The representation of men in ‘Rear window’ are being represented as a secretive and sly.

Dark Knight

In the film ‘Dark Knight’, the opening of the film begins with a CGI effect of a cloud and the colours of the cloud are red and the colour red is in a gradient colour with the colour black. The cloud being in a gradient colour of red and black is effective because not only the colour blends in together, but the connotations of the colour were being blended in together. The colour red connotes danger and warning and because it was blended in with the colour black, danger and warning was also blended in with the connotations of something coming to an end since black connotes death and this was connoting that someone’s life was coming to an end.

Then there is a non- diegetic sound of music being played which links into the theme of thriller. The music sound daunting and scaring. This technical code is a convention because daunting non-diegetic sound is used in a variety of thriller movies to display the atmosphere and the theme of the movie.

There are numerous amounts of close up shots of the characters. The technical code of close up shot is used in the same way in all film genres so the audience can get an insight of the characters emotions and feelings. Furthermore, it allows the audience to analyse the character in detail and by judging their role in the film.

The bad man in the film is wearing the colour purple. This is a symbolic code to represent the character’s role. The colour purple is darker than the colour red so therefore it suggests that this character is a very bad character in the film. Men are being represented as a murderers or a villains.

Evaluation of the reasearch

Above all the research, the ideas I would use in my own thriller movie opening is non –diegetic sound of mysterious music. This is effective because I think this sets the audience mood first, letting the audience feel tense. Furthermore, the non-diegetic sound of the mysterious music denotes that something bad is going to happen and hopefully it will display the theme of the movie. In addition, I will use red typography to connote the theme of the movie to inform the audience that something bad is going to happen.

Furthermore, I feel that using red typography will stand out since red is an eye-catching colour. In addition, I think that for my thriller movie opening, I think that an establishing shot will be useful. This is effective because it displays the setting of the scene.

I would use a numerous of close up match on match shots to reveal the characters face so the audience can judge the characters. Conclusively, the pace of the match on match close up shots will be quite fast. This would be effective because this will make the audience feel tense since it will be flickering back and forth fast and hopefully so this would make the audience feel tense.

Reasearch on different types of Film Genres

Romance- Romeo and Juliet

The target audience for Romeo and Juliet are for adults, and teenagers.

There are a variety of technical codes in the film Romeo and Juliet. Firstly, there is a close-up shot of Romeo. The close up shot of the Romeo is effective because it allows the audience to look deeper into Romeo’s face in order to experience his depression This is effective because the audience would be drawn into his feelings and emotions. In addition, the audience are able to observe his face in more detail. Therefore, the audience want to have sympathy for him.

Another technical code which is used in the film is dark lighting in the background. The black background is effective because it connotes the characters feelings which are isolation and being scared. However, the dark lighting could have another layer of meaning and this could symbolise death. The dark background is also effective because it makes the two shot more effective because the characters stand out and it expresses their relationship between each other.

Moreover, the camera was panning down with Romeo while he was walking slowly down the aisle to his love Juliet. While the camera was panning down, there was non diegetic sound of a violin being played in a fast tempo. This is effective because it allows the audience to run with Romeo. Additionally, it is effective how the editor Jill Bilcock used non-diegetic sound while Romeo was running because as a audience I felt tense and it made me feel so distressed about what is going to happen next and I the non-diegetic sound brings even more action to the drama.

Additionally, the director has used a birds’ eye view shot and this is a technical code because the camera is looking down at the couple. This is effective because when the audience looks at that the frame, the audience are looking down on the two characters and they are able to see how they are both feeling and what the view is like from looking down. In addition, candles are a symbolic code because it represents love, romance and peace in all film genres. It is a convention of a romance genre because it creates a loving and affectionate atmosphere.

The ring is a symbolic code because a ring connotes love and eternity. This is ironic because the couple both die. This is effective because a ring represents love and commitment and for Romeo to give his ring to Juliet represents how much he loves her and since they both die, the audience will have sympathy for the couple. Furthermore, it is effectie how the director used a close up shot because it emphasise the importance of the couple's love.

The technical code of lighting is also applied in all film genres. It is a convention in a romance film because creates a spotlight on a character to show them that they are the focus point of the film. Couples are been represented as unlucky people because the two characters die and it shows that their love is doomed.

Comedy – Bridget Jones’ Diary

Comedy films are aimed at people at all different ages and gender.

The symbolic code which has been used in the film Bridget Jones’ is the colour red.

We know this because the colour red is seen by her pyjamas and one of the cushions in the frame is red. This symbolic code connotes the feeling of passion and love. It is ironic how she is wearing the colour red because Bridget is crying which shows that she is feeling unloved at the moment. However, the colour red could also symbolise love or anger.

Another symbolic code which was used in the film was a rolled up magazine. The rolled up magazine can symbolise Bridget and since the magazine is rolled up into one cylinder this could symbolise that she doesn’t want to open up.

The technical code used in the film is non-digetic sound. Non-digetic sound is a convention because they are used to present the feelings and the atmosphere of the film. In this film, a track by Celine Dionne called ‘All by myself’ was played. Whilst the song was playing, Bridget was miming to the words. This was effective because it made the audience not feel sorry for her but may take this situation in a humorous approach. Furthermore, this represents women being depressed and unloved.

Long shots are used in most genres to present the setting. This denotes the setting of the scene and what the scene looks like. Furthermore, it also displays the character in the frame and where they are positioned from the camera. The Long shot connotes Bridget Jones feeling lonley and distanced from people.

The technical code used in the film was non-digetic sound. Non-digetic sound is a convention because they are used to present the feelings and the atmosphere of the film. In this film, a track by Celine Dionne called ‘All by myself’ was played. Whilst the song was playing, the women character was miming to the words. This was effective because it made the audience not feel sorry for her but to take the situation in a humorous approach.

Sci-Fi- ‘Star Trek’

In the film, most of the characters face is painted in blue. The blue face connotes the characters feeling that the character feels down. However it could also mean that the character feels cold.

Another symbolic code in the film is the non-diegetic sound of the mysterious music being played when the green face character comes in. This is effective because it informs the audience that the focus point of the characters in that specific frame is the green headed character.

When the green headed character talks, there is an extreme close up shot. This is a convention because all different types of film genres use extreme close up shots to represents the mysterious features of that character or their personality. The extreme close-up shot is effective because it allow the audience to identify the character.

Long shots are used in most genres to present the setting. This denotes the setting of the scene and what the scene looks like. Furthermore, it also displays the characters in the setting and where they are positioned from the camera.

Codes and Conventions

Today I have learnt about codes and conventions. There are two different types of code. The name of the codes are technical and symbolic codes.

Symbolic Code

Symbolic codes show what is beneath the surface of what we sede. For example, a character's actions show you how the character is feeling.

Technical Codes

Technical codes are all the ways in which equipment is used to tell the story in a media text. For exaple the cameral work in a film.