7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
Firstly, the purpose of the preliminary task was to help become familiar with the filming equipment, such as the camera and tripod, as well as, introducing us to the editing software Final Cut Pro X. This introduction into the equipment and software not only put my mind at ease, but also reduced the time period of editing our opening thriller, as we were already accustom to how myself and my group would approach this task. This task also helped myself and my group members decided what roles each member would be issued in terms of how familiar each of us were with either the camera and filming or editing on the software.
Personally, what I took from the preliminary task was a better understanding for the minor details I had over looked. For example, I had not considered that the tripod would need to be of a certain tightness in order for you to be able to easily pan the camera round. Another example is attaching the camera; the camera is highly expensive therefore I had not realised how crucial it was to securely attach the camera to the tripod so it is stable and not likely to fall from the tripod.In addition, with filming, the camera frequently became unfocused, I then went on to learn that if i simply place a white piece of paper in front of the lens for a few seconds and then remove it, the camera will automatically focus. This technique I found extremely helpful during the filming process, as during the filming of our thriller opening I found the camera frequently becoming unfocused. In addition, I learnt basic and effective camera angles, which although simple present meaning and a more enhanced viewing. In regards to what Myself and my group filmed in our preliminary task, I learned how important the use of an over shoulder shot is. Before my introduction into filming I had not considered how important it was, however this shot places the audience directly in the scene and immerses them in the action, meaning they are completely engrossed in what is beginning presented to them.
The skills I have developed and learnt throughout this task has been, firstly, how to set the camera up ready for filming, whether that be on the tripod, or just the positioning of the shots. In turn this skill helped ease the filming process of our thriller as I was aware of how to quickly prepare the camera. In regards to filming, I have developed a vast knowledge of camera angles and shot, all of which I had no knowledge of before the preliminary task. Some angles and shots I have become familiar with are, mid shot, long shot, panning, close up's etc. In addition I have developed a new found understanding for the editing process of a film, such as my thriller, with the help of Final Cut Pro X. The editing of our preliminary task and our thriller opening were very similar, so this meant myself and my group could easily work together to quickly and efficiently produce our thriller, without the wasted time getting used to the program. In conclusion, everyone of the new skills I have gained adapted were all applicable to the creation of our thriller film, therefore I feel it was a crucial learning process we could not have missed out on, as it would have seriously impaired our thriller opening.
Thursday, 12 March 2015
As Evaluation- Question 4
Who would be the audience for you media product?
Having a suitable target audience is one of the main factors considered when creating any form of film.When first looking into the creation of myself and my groups opening thriller, we researched the wide variety of age ratings and what their requirements were for that type of audience. As well as my ground and I collected information in the form a style of interview, when in which we has organised a series of questions and filmed their response. Through our research into the BBFC's age ratings and peoples responses to thriller films, we decided that an age rating of 15 would be suitable as our target audience. The selection of people myself and my group interviewed were all teenagers and they we on to express how crucial it was for the characters of our thriller film to be teenagers themselves. Mostly all of the teenage we talked to agreed that by having the characters of the same age would mean they could easily relate with the characters on screen, and in turn provoke a greater emotional response to the action on screen. As well as this, myself and my group members all fit into this young adult/ teenage age bracket, therefore it makes it easy for us to determine what a 15+ audience would look for in a thriller film. Through research we discovered that the 15+ audience would be a combination of both male and females; neither gender seemed to out weigh the other. Within our groups opening thriller film we created the two female victims as extremely stereotypical of what teenagers are expected to be like. For example, the two female victims are shown as reckless and rebellious as they walk the streets intoxicated. However, it was crucial we didn't only present a stereotypical view of teenagers to our target audience, therefore, we have included the juxtaposing antagonist. The antagonist is of a 15+ age group; by having the antagonist of the same age as our demographic, this means that our audience will be unintentionally relating to elements of the antagonist's character, which will make the audience tense and shock by what someone just like themselves could be capable of. Finally, myself and my group feel as though we have created a successful thriller opening which caters to our intended audience. This is through the use of typical thriller conventions and the relatable characters, which help draw the audience in and leave them more shocked when the dark and horrific events begin to take place.
AS Evaluation- Question 2
2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?
Within my thriller opening there are a total of 4 characters, however one of the characters (the young boy) is featured as the antagonists younger self. The other characters are the two female victims. My group and I decided we didn't want to have too many characters as this would help the audience to quickly grasp the narrative within the 2 minutes or so. As well as this, it is highly conventional for a thriller opening to only feature a few characters as to keep the start of the film simple and gripping for the audience. For example, in the thriller film 'Halloween' there are 3 characters shown, the sister/young girl, the boyfriend of the girl and the antagonist, later found out to be the young boy.
The young antagonist is displayed subversively, as they are perceived by the audience to be unhappy a trait not usually associated from a young child, this could be seen through the characters body language. The young boy has his back to the audience therefore the viewer can only assume the character is sad and craves the calm quietness of being alone. This immediately informs the viewer that myself and my group's narrative will follow a dark and sinister tone, contrasted by a familiar and mundane setting. Gender is presented through the use of costume; the child is seen wearing a bulky winter jacket and a simplistic hat, although the audience can only the view the child in clack an white, they can infer from the stereotypical trousers and coat that the child is a male. The iconography of the swing the child is sitting upon enhances the innocence and youth portrayed by the child, meaning any audience members with young siblings, children, friends etc can relate to the young boy causing them to present feelings of sympathy for the character.
The first female victim in question is presented as young, blonde and intoxicated. Her blondeness is a typical convention employed in thriller films to convey the stereotype of a naive and vulnerable character. The second female victim is brunette providing contrast and creates a typical female friendship pairing. Both female victims are shown to be intoxicated , again fitting a stereotype of teenage behavior. This makes the characters instantly recognizable to an audience consisting of our target demographic, young people aged 15- 20, and so more likely to invoke an empathetic response in the viewer.
The antagonist embodies many stereotypical and key conventions of the thriller genre, one of which , creating mystery and tension. In a patriarchal society with males in a position of dominance and power it is conventional to place them in the role of the antagonist, this also references traditional fairy-tales with a dark , masculine villain and weak innocent female . The audience would be familiar with this stereotype and so clearly understand the balance of power between the characters and the likely outcome of their meeting. It also creates an enigma, as the audience may speculate as to whether the female victims will be saved from their fate by a heroic protagonist.
Within my thriller opening there are a total of 4 characters, however one of the characters (the young boy) is featured as the antagonists younger self. The other characters are the two female victims. My group and I decided we didn't want to have too many characters as this would help the audience to quickly grasp the narrative within the 2 minutes or so. As well as this, it is highly conventional for a thriller opening to only feature a few characters as to keep the start of the film simple and gripping for the audience. For example, in the thriller film 'Halloween' there are 3 characters shown, the sister/young girl, the boyfriend of the girl and the antagonist, later found out to be the young boy.
The young antagonist is displayed subversively, as they are perceived by the audience to be unhappy a trait not usually associated from a young child, this could be seen through the characters body language. The young boy has his back to the audience therefore the viewer can only assume the character is sad and craves the calm quietness of being alone. This immediately informs the viewer that myself and my group's narrative will follow a dark and sinister tone, contrasted by a familiar and mundane setting. Gender is presented through the use of costume; the child is seen wearing a bulky winter jacket and a simplistic hat, although the audience can only the view the child in clack an white, they can infer from the stereotypical trousers and coat that the child is a male. The iconography of the swing the child is sitting upon enhances the innocence and youth portrayed by the child, meaning any audience members with young siblings, children, friends etc can relate to the young boy causing them to present feelings of sympathy for the character.
The first female victim in question is presented as young, blonde and intoxicated. Her blondeness is a typical convention employed in thriller films to convey the stereotype of a naive and vulnerable character. The second female victim is brunette providing contrast and creates a typical female friendship pairing. Both female victims are shown to be intoxicated , again fitting a stereotype of teenage behavior. This makes the characters instantly recognizable to an audience consisting of our target demographic, young people aged 15- 20, and so more likely to invoke an empathetic response in the viewer.
The antagonist embodies many stereotypical and key conventions of the thriller genre, one of which , creating mystery and tension. In a patriarchal society with males in a position of dominance and power it is conventional to place them in the role of the antagonist, this also references traditional fairy-tales with a dark , masculine villain and weak innocent female . The audience would be familiar with this stereotype and so clearly understand the balance of power between the characters and the likely outcome of their meeting. It also creates an enigma, as the audience may speculate as to whether the female victims will be saved from their fate by a heroic protagonist.
Thursday, 5 March 2015
AS evaluation- Question 1
AS evaluation- Question 1
1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge the forms and conventions of real media products?
Our genre of film we were issued when we began exploring our
media brief was, the thriller genre. The thriller genre follows many key and
easily distinguishable conventions. In general the genre appeals to a
demographic of thrill seekers, those who find excitement in becoming scared by
the action presented on screen. If we are to look at the thriller genre
analytically we can see that there are reoccurring elements that help create a
highly conventional style of film, these are usually referred to as the 3S',
shock, suspense and surprise. In particular, low key lighting, setting of
a destitute and abandoned nature, eerie
non diegetic music or heart beat sound effects, extreme close ups, and a
variety of other elements are all used to enhance the 3S' and subsequently
improve the viewing for the audience.
A use of low key lighting immediately indicates to the
audience that the film they are watching fits into the thriller genre. This
element of the film is used to present a clear contrast of the areas of dark
and light on screen, this contrast can be used to focus the viewer attention
onto one specific element of the scene. Low key lighting is used in this
particular way within 'Insidious', when the main protagonist is searching
through a parallel universe for his son.
Insidious- 'Happy Family Scene'
Insidious- 'Happy Family Scene'
The low key lighting is used to cast shadows and areas of
darkness, this in turn creates a mysterious and eerie atmosphere, that
subsequently builds tension. In this scene displayed in the image to the right,
the protagonist is searching around a dated and dark house within a parallel
universe. The scene is only lit with the protagonist’s lantern, paired with the
darkness this creates a vast amount of shadow upon the characters displayed.
The shadows help to somewhat distort the faces of the characters and intensify
the suspense, as the darkness exaggerates their smiles, which present a paradox
between the dark and sinister themes the scene is portraying.
A running theme with every film within the thriller genre is
that they feature both a protagonist and antagonist; this was first brought to
light within Aristotle's narrative theory. Stereotypical a female is usually
seen playing the role of a protagonist or victim as they can easily be seen as
unaware and vulnerable. It is however important that the character remains
realistic so the audience can relate to the character and form an attachment
that will later on enhances the audience’s reaction, when the character
inevitably is placed in some form of danger. This believability can be achieved
through the use of a variety of elements of mise-en-scene. An example of this
stereotypical female victim can be seen within the classic 'Here's Johnny'
scene from the classic thriller 'The Shining'. Within this scene the female
protagonist is hiding behind the bathroom door, holding a knife, in fear of her
husband, who is desperately trying to break through the door to harm her. The
victim is snowed into the bathroom so the audience is well aware that there is
no escape for the character. The audience are left feeling sympathetic towards
the character and tense as they await the victim’s fate. As well as this, the
characters facial expressions of horror and despair leave the audience helpless
and tense as they simply just watch the action unfold before them.
Setting- 'Cabin In The Woods'
The setting of a thriller film is essential as it provides
crucial information about the scene and provokes a response from the audience.
A setting in its self can also be a good indicator of what genre of film it is,
i.e if the film was set in a beautiful park, on a sunny day in the spring time,
we could infer that this film would most likely be a romantic comedy, so the
viewer could expect the characters to be a couple. In regards to thriller films
however, if the viewer were to see an old, dark, abandoned house, they would
automatically consider this to be a film within the thriller genre. An example
of an extremely conventional thriller setting is displayed within 'cabin in the
woods'. The title of the film gives a clear indication as to where the film is
likely to be set and as it claims, it is in fact set in a cabin in the woods.
The cabin is both completely secluded from any means of connection to basic
necessitates, such as emergency services, shops, reception, and the cabin
itself is dark, damaged and derelict. With all of this in mind, the setting
immediately informs the viewer that the characters are in serious trouble if
anything bad happens, as they have no way to call for help. In turn, this
leaves the audience extremely tense and nervous as they patiently watch to see
what inevitable danger the characters are faced with and can only solve by
themselves.
Iconography- knife from the film 'Halloween'
Iconography is crucial
within thriller films especially as it is a great way to immediately build a
sense of tension and help emphasise a foreshadowing of what is to come.
Conventionally within thriller films it is likely that the iconography of the
scene will be something like a murder weapon. For example, within the classic
thriller 'Halloween' a knife is presented within the opening scene. The use of
the iconography i.e the knife, has had a vast impact upon the film as it
forebodes the danger and blood shed to come, whilst building an atmosphere of
suspense and tension, as the audience watch on the edge of their seats to
witness what the character holding the knife will do next. In addition, within
the opening of 'Halloween' the audience are introduced to the female character,
however the identity of the character that picks up the knife is concealed.
This in turn intensifies the suspense within the audience as they begin to sympathise
with the female character, as she is currently unaware that there is someone in
her house and approaching her with a knife.
close up- 'The Nightmare on Elm Street'
Cinematography is also fundamental as it also works to
provoke a response from the
audience. In regards to a thriller film there are
certain camera angles that are more conventional of this genre than other
angles and shots, these include; Hand held camerawork, extreme close ups and
long shots. Both a long shots and extreme close ups were featured within the
new adaption of the film 'The Nightmare On Elm Street'.
Long Shot- ' The Nightmare on Elm Street'
The long shot helps to
make the female victim appear smaller. This is done so that the audience are
aware that she is vulnerable and the smallest in status and power within the
scene. As well as this, the setting for this long shot is the victims old
school; the long shot presents the immediate and unwelcome nostalgia and
although the setting is not real and merely a dream state of the female
characters, the long shot frames her
perfectly into the setting, almost
reverting her back to her childlike state. The long shot causes the audience to
become extremely tense as the female victim become even more powerless and also
provokes a sense of empathy toward the female, as the audience witness a
vulnerable and exposed feeling most of the audience have been subject to in
their lives.
The use of the extreme
close up, allows the audience, not only to clearly see the item displayed, but
also to become aware of its importance within the film. The close up image on
the right displays the killer scraping his blades against a metal pole. This
close up is crucial as it used to display how powerful and lethal the killers
'hands' are, as well as present a clear foreboding of what the killer is about
to do to the victim, with the metal work representing her flesh. This close up
will therefore make the viewer extremely nervous as they sympathise for the
victim and what pain may be imminently inflicted upon her. As well as this, a
shallow focus is also featured within this image from the scene, this works
well with the close up as the audience are tense with fear of what’s to come
and also reminded of the victims presence, through the use of the out of focus
silhouette, which intensifies the tense atmosphere as the audience watch, with
bated breathes, to find out what will happen to the victim.
'Here's Johnny'- The Shining
Editing styles may be significantly harder to identify,
compared to all of the micro elements mentioned above, however this does not
mean that it does not build tension and suspense. A jump cut is commonly used
within thriller films especially within the most climatic scene, for example, a
jump cut is used within 'The Shining' just as the husband axes the door and speaks
the famous line, 'here's Johnny!'. The use of the jump cut imitates the viewer’s
nervous and tense reaction; as the camera switches to different angles of the
scene, this causes the audience's eyes to fleet to a variety of elements,
leaving them desperately tense as they are unable to focus on a broad a clear
view of the climactic scene. As well as enhancing the tension built a jump cut
is also used to speed up the scene, removing the unneeded seconds and getting
straight to what the audience wants, the action. In regards to 'The Shining',
this increased pace is extremely effective during the axe scene as the audience
are inevitably shocked when the axe slices through the door. In turn this
particular scene has already succeeded to cover the 3 S'- suspense, shock and
surprise, key elements to any successful, conventional thriller film.
In addition, sound can be used within thriller films to
enhance tension, aid the portrayal of the narrative, as well as displaying a
sense of foreboding. The use of non-diegetic sound within a thriller film can
engage an audience whilst the characters on screen may be completely silent. An
example of effective non diegetic sound (i.e a soundtrack) could be applied to
the car park chase scene with in the famous thriller 'Scream'. The female
character is chased by a stranger within the car park looking to kill the
female victim. The music correlates perfectly with the scene as it maintains a
fast tempo and included a call and response of soprano, eerie notes played by a
typically chilling violin, and echoed by orchestral bass notes. The high and
low pitched notes connote the manic interaction between the victim and
antagonist, portraying how the antagonist is persistent and will follow
everyone one of the victims moves, in order to capture and kill the female. The
music described gives a voice to the scene, as the characters do not speak. A
chase scene within the thriller genre is highly conventional, therefore, by
combining these elements, it not only builds a suspenseful atmosphere, and it
also reminds the audience that they are watching a thriller film. Sound can also help to increase the pace of
the scene making it more 'jumpy' for the audience, provoking a shocked response
from the viewer, leaving them on edge, like any conventional thriller film aims
to achieve. This therefore represents how crucial sound is to any thriller
film, as in a way it plays the role of a crucial, omniscient character.
From the outset I and my group, consisting of Rishika Sohal
and Jemimah Ali, made sure that we had clearly stated what conventions of a
thriller film can be recognized within almost every film within this genre. By
doing so, this gave us a base foundation to work with, allowing us to progress
quickly into creating our media product. Firstly, I and my group decided to set
our thriller opening within a forest, although we agreed that it wouldn't be
set in the forest for the entire opening, as this would reduce the amount of
tension and suspense created by the forest setting. With this in mind we
decided to first feature the forest setting during the chase scene, as this is
the most climatic scene of our thriller opening and the setting would enhance
the audiences feelings of confusion, suspense and tension. The idea of the forest
setting is to capture the female victim at her weakest and most vulnerable
moment without opening and intensify this by placing her in a vast, unknown
setting, making her character seem even smaller, causing the audience to sympathise
for her and keep watching, to find out what her fate will be.
In regards to iconography, we had originally mentioned the
use of a weapon such a knife; however myself and my group decided that this
would be too cliqued. By not displaying any form of weapon to the audience
meant that the viewer would question how one of the female victims died and in
turn create in their minds the victims cause of death. With a small time
bracket of roughly 2 minutes, this meant we saved crucial seconds by letting
the audience decide how the victim died and not displaying it clearly instead. As
well as this, by not featuring any form of murder weapon this would imply that
the antagonist possibly killed the female victim with their bare hands. This
idea would be very chilling for the audience as they realise what humans can be
capable of and are subsequently shocked.
We used a mask for the
antagonist, to conceal their identity; hidden identity is highly conventional
within thriller films, especially in regards to the antagonist. A hidden
identity is highly effective because, the audience are in a constant state of
confusion as they continuously question who the antagonist is, and what their
motives are for wanting kill the female protagonist. Our group decided on the
use of a white mask in particular, this was because of two reasons. The first
reason being that the white could be easily seen during our prevalent use of
low key lighting. The second being that colour white, associated with purity
and innocence, could present the connotations that the antagonist is much like
any other person in appearance, pure, good in faith, honest etc, however
underneath lies a killer, ruthless with a complete lack of 'humanity'.
My group and I made sure we had included a broad range of
cinematography in our thriller opening, which we agreed would help to make our
opening more engaging and interesting for the audience. For example, our group
made sure that we featured more than one point of view shots as we recognised
that these were highly conventional, allowing the audience to be a part of the
scene and immerse themselves within the action. The first time a point of view
shot is featured within our thriller opening is when Shona, playing the first
female victim, approached the 'dead' body of the antagonist.
The camera angle-
Shona/ female victim's Point of View Shot
only allows the audience to view the female protagonist feet whilst she walks,
meaning that they cannot view the antagonist and his immediate response to the
female victim. In turn, by reducing the amount the audience can see within the
scene provokes tension and suspense as they are unaware of what exactly is
going on, and causes them to create the action in their head. Also the use of a
point of view shot helps the audience to put themselves in the position of the
victim, creating a stronger audience and character bond, which means that the
viewer is likely to be more sympathetic as they are placed in the characters
position and developed a form of understanding for what the female victim is
going through. A point of view shot is also feature with the chase scene in the
forest. This shot was used to place the audience in the female victim’s
position and make them feel more tense and scared as they feel as though they
are running themselves.
Editing styles may be hard to distinguish, however they are
crucial, this is why our group decided that we would a few particular
techniques to make our opening thriller interesting and engaging for the
audience. An example of the techniques we used could be, the reaction shot
featured towards the end of our opening thriller, when josie, playing the remaining
female victim, spots the antagonist and screams in both shock and horror. The
reaction shot allowed the audience to witness the full extent of the victims
desperation and despair, leaving them on the edge of their seats as they are
urging the scene to continue, so they can find out exactly what happens to the
female victim they have grown attached to.
As sound is extremely important to films of the thriller
genre, myself and my group felt that it was easy to make our thriller opening
more conventional simply by adding music to the scenes. To introduce our
thriller opening we used a combination of contrapuntal sounds. For example,
during the flash back at the very beginning the sounds of children singing
merrily, combined with eerie undertones fills the scene of the child sitting on
the swing. These sounds are used together create an eerie atmosphere that will
leave the audience tense, as the happy singing children do not match the creepy
distorted pulses of sound. The non-diegetic sound used creates a parallel from
the normality of the child on the swing and forebodes that our opening will
breach the normality of everyday life
In order to show my understanding of the conventions and
development of a thriller film I have compared my thriller opening to the film,
'Scream'. The film is about a masked antagonist that murders teenagers, mostly
female victims, in the small town of Woodsboro. A similarity that can be drawn
for this example is the use of iconography, i.e the mask, hiding the identity
of the killer. However, unlike myself and my groups thriller opening, the film
begins with the killer masked, giving no information away about the antagonist.
Our thriller opening briefly features a close-up of Josh/ the antagonist’s
unmasked face and a connection is made by the audience that the character is
likely to be the antagonist, through the use of angry and aggressive facial
expressions displayed. However, although the audience are somewhat aware of whom
the antagonist is this does not hinder the effectiveness of the concealed
identity. The brief image of the unmasked antagonist intensifies the question
as to what the antagonist’s motives for killing are. Also the image portrays to
the audience how the antagonist is likely to be extremely disturbed, as they
put on the mask and adapt a new persona before inevitably killing the final
female victim. As well as this, they are still left question whether this
chara
cter shown was the killer, or perhaps plays a different role within the
narrative.
A correlation between 'Scream' and our opening thriller is
that the location of both follow the same conventional thriller approach. The
words 'small town' immediately imply that the population is very limited, and
if something horrific were to take place there would be not many people to
immediately help, this setting for 'Scream' makes the audience aware that there
isn't much escape for the characters if something bad were to take place. Our
thriller opening also took place in a quiet town, desolate in people, clear for
any audience that our female victims were extremely vulnerable as they would
not be able to inquire help or assistance immediately, if at all. The effect of
the small town setting of our thriller opening was, to make the audience feel
tense as the setting provided an uncomfortable claustrophobia, as they begin to
realise that the female victims have little escape. As well as this, the
setting was used to further baffle the view because, within little towns mostly
everyone knows everyone, this therefore implies that the killer is known or
connected to the girls in some way. This unanswered question leaves the
gripped, tense and wanting more of the thriller film.
Similar to 'Scream' a prevalent theme of low key lighting is
used. For example, when the scene is set at an open air movie theatre, and as
the film projects on to the characters faces who are viewing the film in the
scene, dark shadows are cast over their faces. This forebodes that an
underlining darkness is amongst the characters, proving to be true when someone
is murdered during the open air showing. Our opening featured also featured the
use of low key lighting, highly conventional for most thriller films. The low
key lighting is most prominent in our opening thriller within the chase scene
in the forest. The chase scene of a thriller film is classically the most
climatic scene, therefore, if the audience cannot see the action clearly, this
will cause them to scrutinize every detail they can see and become completely
engrossed within the film. In turn the viewer will become increasing tense as
they wait to witness what will become of the female victim, as well as urge the
opening thriller to continue, so they can see what happens next.
In addition, another key similarity between 'Scream' and
myself and my groups opening thriller, could be the use of female victims.
'Scream' features many female victims, for example, Drew Barrimore's character
who talks carelessly over the phone with a stranger, until she realisies that
the unknown caller is in fact the killer, thus making the female to seem
extremely innocent and naive. Within our opening thriller our group decided
that we would take this idea and adapt it to fit in our scene, as it worked to
display a typical female victim quickly and effectively. Therefore we adapted
this idea so one of the female victims was talking on the phone in a drunken
state, whilst the other, also drunk, desperately tries to grasp her attention,
failing, leaving her to walk alone towards the antagonist on the road. As soon
as the audience witness how vulnerable the females characters are and how they
are both not cooperating properly with each other, this will leave the audience
extremely tense and sympathetic for the characters.
A general comparison between the thriller film 'Scream' and
our opening thriller film is obviously not a fair one, as we were only provided
two minutes in which to present a selection of generic thriller elements and
not all. However, I feel myself and my groups in depth exploration into the key
thriller conventions allowed to develop a vast understanding of how they could
be used effectively within our short amount of time. The main goals being to
make sure we had touched upon the 3 S', shock, suspense and surprise, and
personally I feel we worked to achieve most of these three with our brief
opening.
A use of low key lighting immediately indicates to the
audience that the film they are watching fits into the thriller genre. This
element of the film is used to present a clear contrast of the areas of dark
and light on screen, this contrast can be used to focus the viewer attention
onto one specific element of the scene. Low key lighting is used in this
particular way within 'Insidious', when the main protagonist is searching
through a parallel universe for his son.
Insidious- 'Happy Family Scene'
|
| Insidious- 'Happy Family Scene' |
The low key lighting is used to cast shadows and areas of
darkness, this in turn creates a mysterious and eerie atmosphere, that
subsequently builds tension. In this scene displayed in the image to the right,
the protagonist is searching around a dated and dark house within a parallel
universe. The scene is only lit with the protagonist’s lantern, paired with the
darkness this creates a vast amount of shadow upon the characters displayed.
The shadows help to somewhat distort the faces of the characters and intensify
the suspense, as the darkness exaggerates their smiles, which present a paradox
between the dark and sinister themes the scene is portraying.
A running theme with every film within the thriller genre is
that they feature both a protagonist and antagonist; this was first brought to
light within Aristotle's narrative theory. Stereotypical a female is usually
seen playing the role of a protagonist or victim as they can easily be seen as
unaware and vulnerable. It is however important that the character remains
realistic so the audience can relate to the character and form an attachment
that will later on enhances the audience’s reaction, when the character
inevitably is placed in some form of danger. This believability can be achieved
through the use of a variety of elements of mise-en-scene. An example of this
stereotypical female victim can be seen within the classic 'Here's Johnny'
scene from the classic thriller 'The Shining'. Within this scene the female
protagonist is hiding behind the bathroom door, holding a knife, in fear of her
husband, who is desperately trying to break through the door to harm her. The
victim is snowed into the bathroom so the audience is well aware that there is
no escape for the character. The audience are left feeling sympathetic towards
the character and tense as they await the victim’s fate. As well as this, the
characters facial expressions of horror and despair leave the audience helpless
and tense as they simply just watch the action unfold before them.
|
| Setting- 'Cabin In The Woods' |
The setting of a thriller film is essential as it provides
crucial information about the scene and provokes a response from the audience.
A setting in its self can also be a good indicator of what genre of film it is,
i.e if the film was set in a beautiful park, on a sunny day in the spring time,
we could infer that this film would most likely be a romantic comedy, so the
viewer could expect the characters to be a couple. In regards to thriller films
however, if the viewer were to see an old, dark, abandoned house, they would
automatically consider this to be a film within the thriller genre. An example
of an extremely conventional thriller setting is displayed within 'cabin in the
woods'. The title of the film gives a clear indication as to where the film is
likely to be set and as it claims, it is in fact set in a cabin in the woods.
The cabin is both completely secluded from any means of connection to basic
necessitates, such as emergency services, shops, reception, and the cabin
itself is dark, damaged and derelict. With all of this in mind, the setting
immediately informs the viewer that the characters are in serious trouble if
anything bad happens, as they have no way to call for help. In turn, this
leaves the audience extremely tense and nervous as they patiently watch to see
what inevitable danger the characters are faced with and can only solve by
themselves.
|
| Iconography- knife from the film 'Halloween' |
Iconography is crucial
within thriller films especially as it is a great way to immediately build a
sense of tension and help emphasise a foreshadowing of what is to come.
Conventionally within thriller films it is likely that the iconography of the
scene will be something like a murder weapon. For example, within the classic
thriller 'Halloween' a knife is presented within the opening scene. The use of
the iconography i.e the knife, has had a vast impact upon the film as it
forebodes the danger and blood shed to come, whilst building an atmosphere of
suspense and tension, as the audience watch on the edge of their seats to
witness what the character holding the knife will do next. In addition, within
the opening of 'Halloween' the audience are introduced to the female character,
however the identity of the character that picks up the knife is concealed.
This in turn intensifies the suspense within the audience as they begin to sympathise
with the female character, as she is currently unaware that there is someone in
her house and approaching her with a knife.
|
| close up- 'The Nightmare on Elm Street' |
Cinematography is also fundamental as it also works to
provoke a response from the
audience. In regards to a thriller film there are
certain camera angles that are more conventional of this genre than other
angles and shots, these include; Hand held camerawork, extreme close ups and
long shots. Both a long shots and extreme close ups were featured within the
new adaption of the film 'The Nightmare On Elm Street'.
|
| Long Shot- ' The Nightmare on Elm Street' |
perfectly into the setting, almost
reverting her back to her childlike state. The long shot causes the audience to
become extremely tense as the female victim become even more powerless and also
provokes a sense of empathy toward the female, as the audience witness a
vulnerable and exposed feeling most of the audience have been subject to in
their lives.
The use of the extreme
close up, allows the audience, not only to clearly see the item displayed, but
also to become aware of its importance within the film. The close up image on
the right displays the killer scraping his blades against a metal pole. This
close up is crucial as it used to display how powerful and lethal the killers
'hands' are, as well as present a clear foreboding of what the killer is about
to do to the victim, with the metal work representing her flesh. This close up
will therefore make the viewer extremely nervous as they sympathise for the
victim and what pain may be imminently inflicted upon her. As well as this, a
shallow focus is also featured within this image from the scene, this works
well with the close up as the audience are tense with fear of what’s to come
and also reminded of the victims presence, through the use of the out of focus
silhouette, which intensifies the tense atmosphere as the audience watch, with
bated breathes, to find out what will happen to the victim.
|
| 'Here's Johnny'- The Shining |
Editing styles may be significantly harder to identify,
compared to all of the micro elements mentioned above, however this does not
mean that it does not build tension and suspense. A jump cut is commonly used
within thriller films especially within the most climatic scene, for example, a
jump cut is used within 'The Shining' just as the husband axes the door and speaks
the famous line, 'here's Johnny!'. The use of the jump cut imitates the viewer’s
nervous and tense reaction; as the camera switches to different angles of the
scene, this causes the audience's eyes to fleet to a variety of elements,
leaving them desperately tense as they are unable to focus on a broad a clear
view of the climactic scene. As well as enhancing the tension built a jump cut
is also used to speed up the scene, removing the unneeded seconds and getting
straight to what the audience wants, the action. In regards to 'The Shining',
this increased pace is extremely effective during the axe scene as the audience
are inevitably shocked when the axe slices through the door. In turn this
particular scene has already succeeded to cover the 3 S'- suspense, shock and
surprise, key elements to any successful, conventional thriller film.
In addition, sound can be used within thriller films to
enhance tension, aid the portrayal of the narrative, as well as displaying a
sense of foreboding. The use of non-diegetic sound within a thriller film can
engage an audience whilst the characters on screen may be completely silent. An
example of effective non diegetic sound (i.e a soundtrack) could be applied to
the car park chase scene with in the famous thriller 'Scream'. The female
character is chased by a stranger within the car park looking to kill the
female victim. The music correlates perfectly with the scene as it maintains a
fast tempo and included a call and response of soprano, eerie notes played by a
typically chilling violin, and echoed by orchestral bass notes. The high and
low pitched notes connote the manic interaction between the victim and
antagonist, portraying how the antagonist is persistent and will follow
everyone one of the victims moves, in order to capture and kill the female. The
music described gives a voice to the scene, as the characters do not speak. A
chase scene within the thriller genre is highly conventional, therefore, by
combining these elements, it not only builds a suspenseful atmosphere, and it
also reminds the audience that they are watching a thriller film. Sound can also help to increase the pace of
the scene making it more 'jumpy' for the audience, provoking a shocked response
from the viewer, leaving them on edge, like any conventional thriller film aims
to achieve. This therefore represents how crucial sound is to any thriller
film, as in a way it plays the role of a crucial, omniscient character.
From the outset I and my group, consisting of Rishika Sohal
and Jemimah Ali, made sure that we had clearly stated what conventions of a
thriller film can be recognized within almost every film within this genre. By
doing so, this gave us a base foundation to work with, allowing us to progress
quickly into creating our media product. Firstly, I and my group decided to set
our thriller opening within a forest, although we agreed that it wouldn't be
set in the forest for the entire opening, as this would reduce the amount of
tension and suspense created by the forest setting. With this in mind we
decided to first feature the forest setting during the chase scene, as this is
the most climatic scene of our thriller opening and the setting would enhance
the audiences feelings of confusion, suspense and tension. The idea of the forest
setting is to capture the female victim at her weakest and most vulnerable
moment without opening and intensify this by placing her in a vast, unknown
setting, making her character seem even smaller, causing the audience to sympathise
for her and keep watching, to find out what her fate will be.
In regards to iconography, we had originally mentioned the
use of a weapon such a knife; however myself and my group decided that this
would be too cliqued. By not displaying any form of weapon to the audience
meant that the viewer would question how one of the female victims died and in
turn create in their minds the victims cause of death. With a small time
bracket of roughly 2 minutes, this meant we saved crucial seconds by letting
the audience decide how the victim died and not displaying it clearly instead. As
well as this, by not featuring any form of murder weapon this would imply that
the antagonist possibly killed the female victim with their bare hands. This
idea would be very chilling for the audience as they realise what humans can be
capable of and are subsequently shocked.
We used a mask for the
antagonist, to conceal their identity; hidden identity is highly conventional
within thriller films, especially in regards to the antagonist. A hidden
identity is highly effective because, the audience are in a constant state of
confusion as they continuously question who the antagonist is, and what their
motives are for wanting kill the female protagonist. Our group decided on the
use of a white mask in particular, this was because of two reasons. The first
reason being that the white could be easily seen during our prevalent use of
low key lighting. The second being that colour white, associated with purity
and innocence, could present the connotations that the antagonist is much like
any other person in appearance, pure, good in faith, honest etc, however
underneath lies a killer, ruthless with a complete lack of 'humanity'.
My group and I made sure we had included a broad range of
cinematography in our thriller opening, which we agreed would help to make our
opening more engaging and interesting for the audience. For example, our group
made sure that we featured more than one point of view shots as we recognised
that these were highly conventional, allowing the audience to be a part of the
scene and immerse themselves within the action. The first time a point of view
shot is featured within our thriller opening is when Shona, playing the first
female victim, approached the 'dead' body of the antagonist.
The camera angle-
|
| Shona/ female victim's Point of View Shot |
only allows the audience to view the female protagonist feet whilst she walks,
meaning that they cannot view the antagonist and his immediate response to the
female victim. In turn, by reducing the amount the audience can see within the
scene provokes tension and suspense as they are unaware of what exactly is
going on, and causes them to create the action in their head. Also the use of a
point of view shot helps the audience to put themselves in the position of the
victim, creating a stronger audience and character bond, which means that the
viewer is likely to be more sympathetic as they are placed in the characters
position and developed a form of understanding for what the female victim is
going through. A point of view shot is also feature with the chase scene in the
forest. This shot was used to place the audience in the female victim’s
position and make them feel more tense and scared as they feel as though they
are running themselves.
Editing styles may be hard to distinguish, however they are
crucial, this is why our group decided that we would a few particular
techniques to make our opening thriller interesting and engaging for the
audience. An example of the techniques we used could be, the reaction shot
featured towards the end of our opening thriller, when josie, playing the remaining
female victim, spots the antagonist and screams in both shock and horror. The
reaction shot allowed the audience to witness the full extent of the victims
desperation and despair, leaving them on the edge of their seats as they are
urging the scene to continue, so they can find out exactly what happens to the
female victim they have grown attached to.
As sound is extremely important to films of the thriller
genre, myself and my group felt that it was easy to make our thriller opening
more conventional simply by adding music to the scenes. To introduce our
thriller opening we used a combination of contrapuntal sounds. For example,
during the flash back at the very beginning the sounds of children singing
merrily, combined with eerie undertones fills the scene of the child sitting on
the swing. These sounds are used together create an eerie atmosphere that will
leave the audience tense, as the happy singing children do not match the creepy
distorted pulses of sound. The non-diegetic sound used creates a parallel from
the normality of the child on the swing and forebodes that our opening will
breach the normality of everyday life
In order to show my understanding of the conventions and
development of a thriller film I have compared my thriller opening to the film,
'Scream'. The film is about a masked antagonist that murders teenagers, mostly
female victims, in the small town of Woodsboro. A similarity that can be drawn
for this example is the use of iconography, i.e the mask, hiding the identity
of the killer. However, unlike myself and my groups thriller opening, the film
begins with the killer masked, giving no information away about the antagonist.
Our thriller opening briefly features a close-up of Josh/ the antagonist’s
unmasked face and a connection is made by the audience that the character is
likely to be the antagonist, through the use of angry and aggressive facial
expressions displayed. However, although the audience are somewhat aware of whom
the antagonist is this does not hinder the effectiveness of the concealed
identity. The brief image of the unmasked antagonist intensifies the question
as to what the antagonist’s motives for killing are. Also the image portrays to
the audience how the antagonist is likely to be extremely disturbed, as they
put on the mask and adapt a new persona before inevitably killing the final
female victim. As well as this, they are still left question whether this
chara
cter shown was the killer, or perhaps plays a different role within the
narrative.
A correlation between 'Scream' and our opening thriller is
that the location of both follow the same conventional thriller approach. The
words 'small town' immediately imply that the population is very limited, and
if something horrific were to take place there would be not many people to
immediately help, this setting for 'Scream' makes the audience aware that there
isn't much escape for the characters if something bad were to take place. Our
thriller opening also took place in a quiet town, desolate in people, clear for
any audience that our female victims were extremely vulnerable as they would
not be able to inquire help or assistance immediately, if at all. The effect of
the small town setting of our thriller opening was, to make the audience feel
tense as the setting provided an uncomfortable claustrophobia, as they begin to
realise that the female victims have little escape. As well as this, the
setting was used to further baffle the view because, within little towns mostly
everyone knows everyone, this therefore implies that the killer is known or
connected to the girls in some way. This unanswered question leaves the
gripped, tense and wanting more of the thriller film.
Similar to 'Scream' a prevalent theme of low key lighting is
used. For example, when the scene is set at an open air movie theatre, and as
the film projects on to the characters faces who are viewing the film in the
scene, dark shadows are cast over their faces. This forebodes that an
underlining darkness is amongst the characters, proving to be true when someone
is murdered during the open air showing. Our opening featured also featured the
use of low key lighting, highly conventional for most thriller films. The low
key lighting is most prominent in our opening thriller within the chase scene
in the forest. The chase scene of a thriller film is classically the most
climatic scene, therefore, if the audience cannot see the action clearly, this
will cause them to scrutinize every detail they can see and become completely
engrossed within the film. In turn the viewer will become increasing tense as
they wait to witness what will become of the female victim, as well as urge the
opening thriller to continue, so they can see what happens next.
In addition, another key similarity between 'Scream' and
myself and my groups opening thriller, could be the use of female victims.
'Scream' features many female victims, for example, Drew Barrimore's character
who talks carelessly over the phone with a stranger, until she realisies that
the unknown caller is in fact the killer, thus making the female to seem
extremely innocent and naive. Within our opening thriller our group decided
that we would take this idea and adapt it to fit in our scene, as it worked to
display a typical female victim quickly and effectively. Therefore we adapted
this idea so one of the female victims was talking on the phone in a drunken
state, whilst the other, also drunk, desperately tries to grasp her attention,
failing, leaving her to walk alone towards the antagonist on the road. As soon
as the audience witness how vulnerable the females characters are and how they
are both not cooperating properly with each other, this will leave the audience
extremely tense and sympathetic for the characters.
A general comparison between the thriller film 'Scream' and
our opening thriller film is obviously not a fair one, as we were only provided
two minutes in which to present a selection of generic thriller elements and
not all. However, I feel myself and my groups in depth exploration into the key
thriller conventions allowed to develop a vast understanding of how they could
be used effectively within our short amount of time. The main goals being to
make sure we had touched upon the 3 S', shock, suspense and surprise, and
personally I feel we worked to achieve most of these three with our brief
opening.
Wednesday, 4 February 2015
Humanity Off- Final Cut
West Hatch High School- 16807
Eleanor Hutchins- 3085
I also worked along side;
Rishika Sohal- 9155
Jemimah Ali- 9002
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