Conventions

Four conventions i would like to use in our opening Thriller scene are, sound, titling, framing and Mise En Scene.

The reason I want to focus on sound is mainly because sound plays a huge role in Thriller films and any other gene of films. I want to focus on not only what the audience will see but also what they will hear. The main point in our opening Thriller scene i want to be especially focused on sound in when our main character begins to get wary of being followed and begins to hear noises and runs. At this point, as he begins to run through the woods, there will be a lot of very fast paced jump cuts on him. Coupled with this I think it is important to have very fast paced sounds he is making. For example the character yelling for help, the sound of the character losing his breathe, the sounds of his shoes as the incredibly quickly run along the track of the woods. All this coupled with his look of being frightened and the fast cutting between him running will really help make a quick tension building introduction to the Thriller film. It will get the audience involved, get them wanting to know what he's running from and what will happen to the main character almost instantly. It was hard to find a picture of a man dressed in a suit running through a forest, but this photo displays what you would see the character on screen doing, and when coupled with fast paced different cut and angles will help bring the scene to life, appear so much more believable.

The second convention I wanted to include was titling. This is important because titles are the first things the audience see so I want to be sure that the titles not only are pleasing to the audience but also fit the scene, the font is fitting, the animation is good. Our opening Thriller scene is named 313, therefor I believe the opening titles should appear somewhat like numbers scrolling down the screen. This will help link the titles to the opening scene and begin to let the audience know some of the elements that make up the film. Both images show ways in which this could be done, on the right it shows numbers and letters falling from the top and stopping the letters next to each other to spell out a name. On the left it shows numbers and letters wiping across from the right to left and again stopping to spell a name.

Framing is another convention I want to really focus on and get absolutely perfect. The reason I want to get it so good is because it can be very easy in filming to miss bits and include a lot that is unneeded. I want to try and get each of our frames in all of our shots as close to perfect as possible and to only film what is needed and create a good focus around that. In this screenshot it shows bad framing as almost two, thirds of the shot the man being interviewed is not in. It is framing like this I want to avoid because its just filming unnecessary things that will make the shot not as accurate and loses focus on what the camera is trying to keep full focus on. Therefor the audience can be distracted and not be fully involved with each exact action. Whereas if we did get the framing correct each and every time, it would keep all the shots looking perfect.

The final convention I wanted to pay attention to is Mise En Scene. This is so important as it really helps create not only the characters but also the surroundings and can bring them together to create the scene to be more believable and give it a sense of reality, but only if done correctly. In our opening scene there is a contrast in Mise En Scene, which may lead some to believe it was not done accurately. However we are making a contrast and using Mise En Scene to its best ability, we are contrasting a formally dressed man, with walking on a dusty track in the woods. It is times like this we need to not only keep the Mise En Scene elements together and keep it believable and real, but also use this convention to the best we can to create an effective yet maybe mysterious opening scene. On the image below it shows a screenshot from The Pursuit Of Happiness. It is a birds eye view shot looking down on a man dressed formally laying with his son. This is done well as it with Mise En Scene shows he is dressed in a suit therefor trying very hard but sleeping in a public bathroom, showing a sad scene of him trying to make it but struggling to succeed. It is elements like these used, I want to incorporate into opening scene to make it clear and accurate.

Location

Location is obviously incredibly important to help set the scene, as it makes it. Therefor we have to choose the absolute best settings for to open the location for our opening Thriller scene.

We have chosen three main areas the opening scene will take place. Location one is in a forest and the character will eventually come out of the forest onto a road. In this scene, the main character begins to hear noises and runs out of the woods to a road, where he is jumped by a group of masked men. This will be filmed in a woods opposite the Carver Barracks. The reason we chose a forest is because they are so renowned for being alarming, in Thriller films, the audience are aware that the woods are never a good place. In Thriller films a forest represent an idea of danger. The two pictures show firstly a birds eye view of the woods we are going to use, that does actually have some kind of track leading through and out of it, which our character will be walking along. Secondly is if you follow the track all the way up that is shown in the picture, you come out here to the road, where our character gets jumped, also what is apparent in this photo is that on the left of the photo, in the distance, you can see the forest our character has just ran out from.

The second location where our opening scene will take place is inside a warehouse. The is where the main character begins to regain consciousness only to find out he is tied to a chair in a darkened warehouse. The location we are using for this, is a barn also right outside the forest we are filming in. We chose this because a warehouse gives the impression of not only, in the middle of nowhere therefor no escape, but also simply because a dark and mysterious warehouse is represented and very spooky and never a good sign in Thriller films. In this photo, it is a birds eye view of the barn we will be using to film this scene.

Our final scene will take place in the location of a bedroom. It is the scene where the main character wakes up in relief to find out he was dreaming. However then looks across at his clock to see the time, and it 3:13, which where the three numbers he saw earlier in his 'dream', finally with a look of shock and horror on his face when he hears a knock on the door. The reason we chose to use a bedroom for this scene are obvious, to make it seem real and believe, you have just woken up from a nightmare, your laying in your bed very shaken up and you proceed to look at the time. This is a very believable scene. I have provided no image to go with this description as we are unsure yet which exact bedroom we will be using to film this scene.

Costumes

We have thought about the costumes very carefully, as it will make some characters different to the other characters. The clothes they wear will also show specific characteristics of the character.

The main character will be wearing formal clothes, perhaps a suit. We want the character to look quite intelligent but have a mysterious side to him. This will be a large contrast because he will be walking through woods and it will make the audience confused and ask questions. 

The other characters in the opening scene will be the people kidnapping the main character. They will be wearing  dark clothing to stop them being scene and perhaps something to stop being seeing their face such as a balaclava. They may also being carrying some sort of weapon which shows they have authority over the other character. 

Lighting& Location

Lighting will be very important in our opening of the thriller film because it will set the scene, it gives the audience an idea of how dark the film is going to be and what type of thriller it will be. In one of the scenes we will have to use natural lighting because it will be filmed outside. The other two scenes we will have the chance to use lights.

The first scene will be filmed in a gloomy forest and we aim to film it later in the afternoon when its getting dark, but we still we need to have some natural lighting so the audience can see what the character is doing. The lighting we use for this scene will set a mysterious scene and the audience will not know what is happening.

The second scene is going to be set in a empty cheerless warehouse. The corners of the room will be dark but the character that has been tied up is going to be centred in the middle of the room . With one of the lights from the warehouse shining onto him. The warehouse is going to be very dark and gloomy.

The third and final scene will be set in bedroom where the character will be waking up in the middle in the of the night. We will have to make it dark as its the middle of the night but we will need to have some light to film in. We could perhaps have lighting flashing through the curtains lighting up the room to give some light this will  make the opening sequence more thrilling. Also the character will use his phone and his alarm clock which will both provide light.

Props

Props are very important for our opening Thriller scene as they help make up the screenplay. We have to make our props very accurate to help create a character and inform the audience of their nature and more importantly for Thrillers, props help show who the character is, 'vulnerable' 'villain' 'hero' 'wrong place, wrong time'.

I think one prop that should be used for our 'business man character' is a very smart well-known expensive phone, perhaps a iPhone or Blackberry. This coupled with the smart clothes the character will be wearing will give him the higher class, business man stereotypical look.







Another few props that will be used in the scene in the warehouse include a chair and bright light shining down on the character sitting the chair. This will create the classic torture scene, a vulnerable individual that is being tormented by a mysterious group of 'villains'.










A final set of props that is important to use in our opening Thriller scene is the weapons the villain characters are equipped with in the warehouse scene. We think that instead of the usual weapons, guns. Instead we will use more torture associated weapons. Its important to not go as far as the psychotic weapons such as chain saw, nail gun etc, but maybe a baseball bat to represent pure brutality and instead of a small knife perhaps a bread knife. This will help really create realism for our characters and begin to bring them to life inside the heads of our audience.

Lighting

Lighting is obviously a key feature for our opening Thriller scene as a lot of people don't realise the importance level lighting holds in setting the scene. For example coupled with a forest setting, if it is dark, it ensures the audience this is mysterious scene being set.

I think the lighting we will use, firstly for the all round day or night time light. I think it would be best if we filmed in the evening just as it is beginning to get dark, which implies, the end of the day and where night begins so does a level of insecurity and mystery. So I think for the part the character is walking through the woods, i believe we should film, just as it begins to get dark.

In the scene in the warehouse, i think the lights should be very dark around the corners of the room, this well help the audience feel wary of the place and whats about to happen within it. However in the centre of the room, where the character tied up is, there will one distinctive bright light shining down on him. This will lead to the audience feeling for the character tied up as he is the light one, and lets the audience know who the villains are because they are represented by dark and shadowed lighting.

Costumes

Costumes are very important to our opening Thriller scene as they help create the characters. The way a character is dressed instantly gives the audience a view on what they think that particular character will act like.

The main character will be dressed in a very formal outfit, perhaps a suit. He also will check his phone at some point, the phone will be a very expensive phone like an iPhone or Blackberry which will help add to the character seeming intelligent and intellectual. This will make him seem very smart and will give the impression he is from a very business orientated background. This will be a huge contrast as in the scene he will be walking through the woods. This works so well as the woods are renowned in Thriller films for being a more dark mysterious place, which will then lead to almost confusing the audience instantly because of the contrast between a very smart man walking in a typical dark and mysterious woods.

The other characters that will appear in our opening scene are our kidnappers. They will be dressed in much more dark and alarming costumes. They will also perhaps be wearing some sort to clothing to cover their face, this will keep them seeming very dark and mysterious. The characters will be equipped with some sort of weapon simply to add to the level of violence they represent and how cautious the audience feel towards them.

Costume and Props ideas

Seeing as we are making a psychological thriller it is important  not to reveal too much in the opening minutes. Having watched a few thrillers such a s Alfred Hitchcock's psycho we have decided to think carefully about the costumes we use. For example the main character is going to be wearing a suit. This will immediately bring the audience to question why he is wearing a suit. The idea of wearing a suit will make the audience think that he is upper class. the fact that he is going to be walking through a pathway through a woods in a suit is quite odd. what we want is for the audience to question the film. Another way we are going to do this is by  using  the numbers 3:13. We will use these numbers effectively by making them briefly appear through the dream sequence and then as josh wakes up during the middle of the night to see what the time is it's 3:13. The use of a baseball bat will be something to attract the audience as they will want to know what its going to be used for. They will relate it to being  a weapon due to the circumstances. However we can play on this in many ways.

I have though of an effective opening scene. we should begin with a simple zoom on a persons feet while they are walking. then the screen is blacked out and credits are shown including production companies (Ling companies). The shot that follows is again a persons feet while walking. this will all add to a build up in suspense as the character is kept hidden. the audience will begin to draw conclusions and judge what they see based solely on what shoes the person is wearing. this is good as we can then use this to create a very good First 2 minutes of a thriller film.

3:13 is a only a number however after you have seen the opening of our film it will not just be a number. you will associate it with things. we have chosen to play on numbers as it will work great for our psychological thriller, that thrives on superstitious things such as the number 13 and crows or black cats.

One prop that e are going to be using is a van. this van is what the main character will be transported in from the forest where he was attacked to the warehouse where he is kept. the van will b great as it is often seen as a vehicle used for smuggling drugs as well as being ideal for kidnappings. The van will play a huge role in making the thriller opening believable. Vans are often seen to be harmless however people can relate to them being great for transporting things whilst keeping it hidden. Having a van will work well as they have seen van being used for this kind of things before.

Preliminary task (Mysterious Man) Evaluation

This is our preliminary task with annotations from each of us.

Progress

I have learnt many things throughout this process mainly from our preliminary task. From our preliminary task i have understood how important it is to use a tripod, it is significantly supreme to hand-held. I have also learnt the importance of the use of the 180 degree rule, stating only the use of 180 degrees when filming two characters in dialogue. I also learnt a lot of the basic editing whilst using Final Cut, this is the best piece of progress I could have as it should really help out when it comes to editing the real opening 2m to a Thriller.

Besides the preliminary task i have learnt a lot through analysing the opening credits and scene to well-known Thrillers. I have learnt the ways in which they use correct font and great settings in an attempt to set the normal Thriller scene. I have also done research into fonts we could use and names/locations/techniques that we could include in our opening Thriller scene.

In conclusion I believe I have picked up great techniques and incredibly helpful knowledge that is needed to help create a effective and interesting Thriller opening scene.

Terminator 2 opening analysis

I decided to watch a different kind of thriller so i decided to watch Terminator 2 Judgement day. Overall i was very impressed with this film i thought the use of special effects was great and it matched most of the convections of a thriller film.

Here is the opening scene i analysed http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9YU0hQEZ5M . The camera starts with a long establishing shot of a busy motorway scene. Non dietetic slow paced music is played straight away. It then cuts to some children playing on swings with sounds of laughter. They use special effects to change it from happy to sad. A blank white screen appears to show a change in time. The next shot shows a scene of destruction, as you have a close up of a burnt out car, with a human skeleton inside. This shows an element of the thriller genre. The camera pans out to show even more destruction with many other cars like it and also shows the motorway bridge we see at the beginning of the extract has been demolished. We can see that it is night time this and dead skulls show an element of danger. It also shows the playground that we saw kids happily playing in  has been ruined and deserted.  A non diegetic narrator is introduced and we find out what has happened.

We see a close up of a robots foot crush a humans skull which shows conflict between eachother. The camera zooms out and looks up at the robot showing that the robot has power and authority and weakness of the humans. We see it holding a futuristic weapon and laser bolts in the background this shows that it a Sci- Fi thriller.

 We see a human and his costume suggests there is a war. An extreme long shot shows the fight between the human soldiers and the machines. The machines look a lot bigger and more powerful.

There is another cut to a underground bunker, all the dietetic sound of the battle is stopped and the narrator starts to speak again about the importance of one character. We see this and the camera shows this because all the other soldiers are saluting him. We have a close up about the character she is speaking about. We see him in a high ranked uniform which again shows his importance. An extreme close up of his eyes are followed by an explosion and the credits begin to commence on a fiery background.

Thriller Sub-Genres

There are many different Thriller sub genres and I thought it would be good to take time to research these, as they can make up the foundations of a classic Thriller film.

Action-Adventure Thriller:
This is one of the most common sub genres and also one of the hardest to write, because of the need for hard-hitting action scenes. The genre focuses on face-paced, out of control themes, it also includes the more adventure side of things, the mystery, the quests, etc. This works so well as it can almost help bring back the childhood 'adventure' memories which helps make the film more effective.

Psychological Thriller:
This more so focuses on the characters of the film, whilst implementing elements of drama and mystery, Psychological Thriller's are one of the most loved Thriller sub genres. They also have some overlaps with psychological horrors and drama. They are so effective as they aimed to make the audience become very involved and get very sucked into the story and almost get a bit worried or scared of the events happening, they are aimed to almost just 'mess with you head'.

Historical Thriller:
These films are based in the past. They tend to focus on a well-known historical event or create a fiction one themselves. It is a rather uncommon Thriller sub genre and when used it often coupled with another genre, like action-adventure.

Disaster Thriller:
These films are just simply fully based around some sort of disaster. Usually natural disasters like earthquakes or volcano eruption, something very severe and hugely dangerous. They work around the danger to help bring in the elements of a normal Thriller to make these films effective and Thriller based


Medical Thriller:
Robin Cook introduced this sub genre that has all the usual ideas of a Thriller, but incorporates them around a specific theme of medicine. Usually modern medicine that turns into a very deadly substance. This is effective as everyone can relate to the extremeness of the events if something like this were ever to happen.

Romantic Thriller:
This is usually based around focusing on two people, with the normal Romance storyline. However the difference is that is contains a lot more suspense and a lot more tension to help give it the elements to make up a Thriller.

Crime Thriller:
This is also sometimes referred to as Serial-Killer Thriller. It is a hugely popular sub genre as it is based around some sort of crime, wether it be a detective hunting down a serial killer, or a gang who have robbed a bank. This is so popular because we can relate to it, in that sometimes, events like these do happen.

Research on sound for our main task

After plotting the storyline for our main task i decided to research what kind of sound i should use for the opening of our thriller. I looked on YouTube to see what music i could use to go over it but then later realised i would need to get permission from the artist which would be very timely and not effective. I further looked and found a website http://www.freesound.org/ this was a good website because it was easy to download and had many choices. I think that for our main task it would be more effective if we used non dietetic sound. We could use ambient sounds,  and sounds that would make it more dramatic and thrilling such as thunderstorms. With non diegtic sounds we can also layer the music for instance we could put a knock on the door over a phone ringing and it would sound very effective. 

http://www.freesound.org/search/?q=&f=&s=num_downloads+desc&advanced=0

Idea 2 Opening Scene (In-Depth)

I wanted to do a short amount of work just understanding how to go more in depth to the opening of a Thriller film. The beginning of the opening scene would include very slow paced elements, slow, calming music. Credits would begin to fade in and out and the camera would have a great attention to establish the scene and whats going on, no other real focus beside the surroundings. The middle of the opening scene would be more sharp sounds would begin and the music tempo would increase as the camera begins to focus on a specific character running, She will be out of breathe in a panic, the audience will be confused with the mystery of this opening scene, want to continue watching. A blacked out shadowed man is chasing her. She then runs into a dead end, close-up on he facial expressions, worried. All sounds stop, she turns around and begins to look for the villain in silence, this helps build tension and suspense. At the end she begins to hear noises, looks around for where there coming from. Tension building music begins and as suspense is built up to a peak, the villain runs from begins and grabs her. A loud and very alarming sound, cuts to black screen and title slowly fades in.

Jaws Opening Credits

Jaws Opening Scene (embedding disabled by request)

Having watched the opening credits of jaws i was shocked to see a very simple credit and title design for such a big budget film. the credits were all very simple looking yet so effective as it had a sense of mystery about it. The title 'JAWS' is done is capitals and has a unique look about it, however it has all been done for a good reason. In this case to mislead the audience in making them think its a simple film that's been done before. the credits are written in blue which is used to show that the film is based on some sort of marine animal in this case a great white shark.the credits finish shorty after the underwater clip. which is significant as it shows it is not very important to the rest of the film because then they wouldn't put the credits over it. However its an effective scene to put the credits on as nothing is happening.

Thriller Plots

Idea 1

Beginning
A man being murdered. By a villain/psycho.

Middle
Focus on the family of the victim. they are mourning the loss of there son. Psycho is planning the murder of the rest of the family, has been stalking the family.

End
Find out the killers background motive, the scene where he tries to kill the rest of the family.

Idea 2

Beginning
A CIA agent comes into a school to tell a young lad that his brother has been brutally murdered.

Middle
The man seen in the school being told his brother had been killed is now planning to avenge his brother. he is working for the police doing volunteer work, in an attempt to get closer to the killer.

End
The man has now been trying to catch and kill the murderer for 50years. However one day he comes home to find the man he has been chasing shot in his apartment.

Idea 3

Beginning
Man being stalked through window opposite his house.

Middle
starts walking down the street and drops off some gear. He gets kidnapped and hooded by a white van and taken to a warehouse.

End
The police working on the case find him hanging in a room but manage to bring him back to life but do not manage to find the killer.

Alfred Hitchcock Research

I wanted to do some of my own personal research about Alfred Hitchcock. Hitchcock was born on the 13th of August 1899 in London, England, the second son of three children. He became an American citizen in 1956 when he moved to Hollywood and eventually passed away April 29th 1980. He was involved in many techniques in the suspense and the psychological thriller genres and had a very successful career in British cinema before moving to America. In 1920 Hitchcock managed to gain a job in a opening London studio as title designer and designed every title for that studio for the next two years. It was in 1923 he got his first chance to direct a film, and took it. When the original director Hugh Croise fell ill, Hitchcock continued to finish directing the film 'Always Tell Your Wife'. The studio chiefs were very impressed by the work Hitchcock had done and gifted him with the chance to direct the film 'Number 13'. Unfortunately before Hitchcock got time to finish the film, the studio in London was closed down, however he was then hired by a man called Michael Balcon as assistant director for a company to later be named Gainsborough Pictures. Hitchcock continued to be appreciated for his work and quickly grew to be one of the most well known directors of his time.

Some of the most well known films Hitchcock was involved in:

Psycho
Rear Window
North By Northwest

He continued to be involved in some great Thriller films and was later named 'The Master Of Suspense'.

Font Research

I wanted to not only research opening titles from well known Thriller films, but also many variations of fonts that we could use for our Thriller opening scene. So I used the website http://www.dafont.com/ to attempt to learn more about how fonts stand out are look effective whilst being linked in with setting the scene.

I found three fonts from different categories on the website, the first one was from the Horror category. It is named 'Face Your Fears'. It is a very common horror-type font, aimed to give the audience a feel of blood and gore and also to build the tension in that the film will may include some disturbing or alarming actions. I think it is very effective because of this because as soon as you see it, you are instantly aware, it in itself begins to set the scene which is exactly what a very good font should do. A example of this is if you look at this exact font and you have never seen it before, ask yourself what film genre you think of, its based for horror/thriller. This is so important to us because if we can find a font that could do this for our Thriller scene it would help us set the scene which is crucial as it is after all the opening scene we are creating, and it must be effective.

The second font was from the category Comic, it is labelled 'Badaboom'. The reason i wanted to include this font and others from not such a horror/thriller type category is try and find out other features, such as which stand out more, which are more eye-catching. There is no doubt that this font is more bold, more loud and more sort of in your face. It does definitely stand out, but does it stand out more than the 'Face Your Fears' font? The reason I want to argue this is because although the 'Badaboom' font is much more bold and loud, is it more eye catching than the other. It is a very used font, or at least a very common looking font this means yes it is bold it does stand out but maybe it is better for us to go with a more under used font that will easily fit in with the screenplay and set the scene.

The final font I looked at is titled 'Birth Of A Hero'. This font is very interesting as could be used in many film genres, it is a very versatile font which may not be a bad thing. I think that there is no doubt it does not stand out as much as the other to fonts, however it is a very intriguing font as it has a lot going on within it. The wording in the font seems to be almost shattering away or breaking off, this is interesting as it could be used to relate to a specific feature within the opening scene. For example if the opening scene was of a abandoned rough neighbourhood, this font could go perfectly and fit it just like the 'Face Your Fears' font in setting the scene. I think that if we chose a font like this one it would be important to try and fit it in some how with what the opening scene is about to make the scene more effective and to create a unique Thriller opening.

From researching these fonts I have realised the importance they have, that to create an effective opening Thriller scene, we must firstly find a font that is eye-catching and stands out, and secondly incorporate it into the opening scene to not only be very eye-pleasing but also help set the scene itself.

Opening Titles Analysis (Panic Room)

I wanted to do as much research as I could for opening titles, simply because i want to learn and understand how to create such unique and effective looking opening credits. The reason being that i feel they are a very key element in the opening scene of a film as they are the opening to a film, the first part judged, and if they are not pleasing then they are not good enough.

To research the opening titles for this Thriller film i used the website http://www.artofthetitle.com/ it helped me view the opening credits and really get a grip on how they were intended to be portrayed to the audience.

Panic Room opening with the trademark Columbia opening sequence, however one thing that was changed was the music that goes with this sequence. It is replaced with much more alarming sounds, like thunder and lightning. Then it fades to black and the very first thing heard is police sirens, straight away give the audience a sense of suspense and tension. As the colour fades back in, it reveals a establishing shot, displaying the city with the first line of text over it. The font is a fairly bold silver font, it also includes a sense of 3D to it to help it clearly stand out from all the other colours in the city scene background. Many jump cuts are used to switch to a different set of buildings with a different title over it, whether it be main actors of big companies involved. Throughout all this time the sounds being emitted consist of traffic and the normal sounds heard in a city, also very high string music that is commonly associated with Thriller films. Eventually a pan shot is used to reveal the title as it pans, this changes from the normal more still image like shots. Another feature I think is important to point out is the angles of the shots. This is done very effectively, if it is a high angle shot of the buildings, the text over the top will also be in the same position, this helps really link the titles in with the surroundings making it not only more creative but eye-pleasing. The sounds do change as the opening credits continue, when the title of the film 'Panic Room' is displayed in a more bolder and larger font the high string music increases in tempo and adds in new 'on edge' sounds, this is an attempt to help begin the suspense that is so renowned for Thrillers.

I think what we can learn from the opening titles from the film Panic Room is that we can try to incorporate them into the surroundings but at the same time make them sufficiently stand out. This would be good as it brings the titles and the scene together to help set the scene instead of both, titles and scene being nothing alike and in no real way linked and therefore not creating a simple yet effective opening title sequence.

Analysing first 5 minutes of Die Hard 4.0

This film came on while i was watching TV.  At first i had thought that die hard was merely an action film but after watching the first 5 minutes of this film it had me wanting to watch all of it. This is a thriller due to the fact that there are multiple jump cuts. This was used to show different people in different places whilst not revealing much about them. This is something that we could do for our thriller opening. This technique is very effective as it tells the audience that they are doing something which they shouldn't be. Probably something to do with government papers as they are getting through firewalls and  passwords. It lest the audience have make conclusions from a very short bit of the film.

After a conversation between the head of FBI and a lower ranking female in the middle of the pentagon an establishing shot is used to focus on a car. When soon the main character, who is Bruce Willis, pulls someone out of the car and an argument begins. During the credits something of importance is happening but the audience do not find out a lot about it. when the credits are over a new scene begins but its different. these are all things that we could use in out thriller opening.

Character types research

Some common character types in a thriller are superheroes,detectives, supernatural children and animals, attractive females and  insane villains.

Supernatural children and animals these are people/ animals with unexplained powers. The supernatural force is normally threatening, and sometimes mystery to be solved such as Sixth sense, Jaws and The orphan.

Detectives are normally the protagonist in thrillers they are typically someone connected to the law. They rely on the their knowledge to capture the villain. For example Holmes and Bond.

Attractive females are characters which are irresistible and lead the hero's into danger.

Superheroes are fictional characters with superhuman powers. They show alter egos, special powers and secret lairs. They normally have people who despise them and try to humiliate them. For example Superman, Batman and Watchman.


Insane villains are marked by insanity but also pure brilliance they are connected to insane asylums and hospitals for example the Joker from batman and The shining.

Opening Titles Analysis (North By Northwest)

The film North By Northwest has a very intriguing and eye-catching opening title sequence, I want to analyse the opening titles and see how they use backdrops and fonts to create such a unique opening title scene.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIlqatMQSgI

The titles open as a bright green backdrop with multiple black lines feeding in from different angles, these black lines then cross each other and make a patterned background that is later very effectively used to fade in the scene. The text is white to stand out over the green background and the font is fairly bold, not italic or unordinary, just white and clear. This looks quite pleasing to the eye as it is easy to read, and is bought in with a simple swipe in animation. The titles consist of firstly companies involved then main actors, then says 'in Alfred Hitchcock's, North By Northwest'. There is arrows on the text of the title, 'North By Northwest', this could be to give it some kind of uniqueness from the other text and to show it is important and needs to stand out from the rest. What happens next is very effective, the white text disappears and the green backdrop dissolves revealing the side of a corporate looking building of a big business. This is done so effectively because although the green backdrop dissolves out of the shot, the original black crossing lines stay and are lines in the building.

This is a very effective change to cut into a city scene, you can see the moving cars on the busy road in the reflection of the building. Then eventually the shot dissolves again into a set of various different scenes that are displaying a busy road/street/building. This helps set the scene whilst showing the opening credits which is something that is very important in a film. The sounds used in the opening titles are very high string sounds which contribute to the Thriller scene, as they are very renowned sounds for Thriller films, to build tension, suspense or even in this case to set the scene.

I think we should involve elements like the ones used in this films opening titles to help create effective and eye-pleasing opening titles for our Thriller scene. We could take the idea of attempting to set the scene whilst displaying our opening credits, this will help our opening scene flow well and have a good Thriller scene set before any real video screenplay begins.

Shot Types For Preliminary

180 degree rule- A rule that states that states when two characters are initiating in a scene should always have the same left/right relationship to each other this helps orientating the viewer.  If you break the 180 degree line it can disrupt the scene. We will use this in our preliminary when the the antagonist who walks through the door sits down and initiates a conversation with the other character. The camera will change focus depending on whos speaking.

Cut- Sudden change of shot from one viewpoint or location to another. They occur very often because they change the scene, compress time, vary the point of view and build up an image or idea.

Matched cut- A cut between to shots which match graphically, the familiar relationships make the change seem smooth. We will show this is our preliminary by filming the character from behind walking to and opening the door then we will use a match cut and will have a frontal view of the character walking through the door.

Close up- This is a shot at very close range and focusing on something. We will do this by using a close up on the door handle when the character opens it.

over the shoulder shot- A shot taken in the perspective of the camera angle, this makes it third person. We will use this by looking over the shoulder of the antagonist walking down the stairs.

Font Research (Taxi Driver)

It is clear that if we can want to create a impressive Thriller opening scene it is important to include very effective opening titles.

I wanted to research some different ways other Thriller films create such unique fonts to fit and set the scene. So using the website http://www.artofthetitle.com I studied the film Taxi Driver as it has incredibly effective opening titles as the font matches the scene, it looks like it is straight from the Taxi.

In this films opening credits it begins with firstly, some very modern red wording displaying the main companies and actors involved in the film. Then it fades into a smoke screen that appears to have come from the exhaust of a taxi. It then begins to clear as a taxi reverses through it, this helps set the scene instantly, it displays what the film will be about. As the taxi continues to reverse out of the shot it reveals the title of the film. 'Taxi Driver' is displayed in a font that is clearly associated with taxi's, orange and like the font used on the top of a taxi to show it is operating. This is very effective as it links directly in with not only the screenplay but what the film will be about. The titles continue to roll displaying other main actors, the font is still in the normal taxi font but light up to add emphasis to them, this is very creative as it creates an animation on the text to draw attention from the audience to the names. What happens next is they include more bold orange fonts, with a blurry coloured background. This makes the sharper text on top stand out more from the more blurry colours in the background.

I think that it is important that when we have thought of an idea for our opening Thriller scene we relate the text to the story as it is very creative and sets a great scene just from the opening titles.

Font research

Getting the right font for the opening titles and the rest of the film is vital in its success. I decided to look at what font famous thriller films had decided to use in order to get a good perspective of what good opening titles looked at.

I first looked at Pulp Fiction http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4SgQLgtQE8 although i think it is a great thriller, i found the opening titles boring and it didn't make me want to keep viewing. Although it stood out i found it glum and not very distinctive. It didn't match the music and I didn't see the effect in using a yellow font.

I looked further and found what i thought was a great opening title and use of good font in Se7en http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-k2gsEI34CE&feature=related i found their use of font effective because it seems a graphical font it also creates a sense of menace.They use very little colour and mainly keep it black and white effect and a flickering background effect like an old cinema reel makes it very atmospheric. It all builds up and uses layers and scratch noises which makes it foreboding. The whole trailer creates a very stark mood and leaves the viewer with a sense of uneasiness. The font
itself is quite basic but because they set it on a plain
background it has an excellent effect and creates a
good mood.

Psycho camera shot research

In order for us to get a clear insight into effective camera shots i though why not look at one of the most popular thriller films. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NG3-GlvKPcg. This is a moder trailer for alfred hitchcocks thriller Psycho.

Psycho by Alfred Hitchcock

The camera shots at the beginning are zooms on a victims feet, hands and the shower curtains ripping. This immediately shows how important it is to have  the right camera shot and angle. the close up on the feet in the bathtub drags the audience in as the film maker has tried to make it as intriguing as possible. carry on watching and there is a classic case of having too dark a lights for the audience to see however it is visible enough to see a knife. This is simple and effective as it gives the blacked out character a sense f mystery.

As you watch a little longer a establishing shot is used as the camera slowly gets closer to a old, dark house. The shot used is effective as it shows the audience that this house Will play some significance. soon a  similar shot comes up as there is a point of view shot from the driving seat of a car. this shot has been done during heavy rainfall and dark skies which is why it is so effective. the audience become more and more involved as the suspense builds.

A close up on a single piece of paper again shows the audience that it will have a part to play and the significance  of it. Another establishing shot of the haunted house. However this time it is in the dark and its from a window overlooking the house.

Character research

The Blonde Girl

Is an absolute must have if your film is a low budget horror film. the blonde girl is almost always killed due to her own stupidity. The dumb blonde character doesnt feature for many minutes as they are soon killed by the scary killer.

Typical Films
Horror films or parodies of horror films. they are almost always the victim and as said earlier usually die within a few minutes of first being part of the film.

Always seen:

• Wearing hardly any clothes
• Falling over just as they are about to get away
• Asking stupid questions

Typical quotes:

• "i don't know what to do"
• "what do i do now"
• "whats happening to me ?"

The reason why i am researching different characters is because we are coming to the stage when we need to know as a group what kind of characters are going to be in our film. The dumb blonde research has given me an insight into why it's important to have a specific range of characters based on the kind of film yours is going to be. So our film is giong to be a psychological thriller  so therefore it's useful to know some of the things that a psycho killer would act and do.

Research evaluation for the title

From are research we can tell that 3:13 is by far the favourite. This is why we have decided that this will be the title for our film. From our research we can tell that 3:13 is the favourite due to the fact that its intriguing and is unique. As well as having a superstitious element about it

They liked it because it makes the audience feel a sense of mystery. From almost everyone we found out that just seeing the title 3:13 they wanted to watch the film.

From the following question we found out that 3:13was the preferred name for a thriller film,the believed that 3:13 was the most related to a thriller as it makes the audience want to watch the film as it is a number makes it very intriguing.

Title Questionnaire

Which title do you prefer (put a tick next to your favourite)

3:13
The runner
Criminal
No surrender
The lock-down

Why do you like it?




Which one do you think works best for a psychological thriller?

Rear Window Alfred Hitchcock

We looked at rear window in the class and i thought that it was a good thriller opening. This is because it is very different to all the other thrillers because it isn't mysterious and tense like the other ones we have looked at it is more happy and jolly.

The film starts off with the titles rolling right at the beginning so the characters and the the director Alfred Hitchcock it also shows that Alfred Hitchcock is one of the main people in it because his name comes up last but this could also be the case because he has directed other great films in his life. Then it goes into an American city and you can tell that its the morning because they use light tones and you see people getting up from there bed. Also it is a bit mysterious because you see a cat go up the stairs and this could mean that there has been bad luck happen to someone or is about to happen. The camera scrolls round on a lot of people and how that get up in the morning so two people sleeping on a balcony and a girl is in the shower. Then the camera focuses on a man in a wheel chair that has a broken leg and on his cast he has written "here lie the broken bones of L.B Jefferies" this seems comical and not something people would associate with a thriller. then the camera focuses on a broken camera and lots of pictures that seem to be taken in dangerous positions and it makes the consumer wonder if it was something to do with the camera for why he broke his leg. After that there is a match cut for when the man is awake and he is talking on the phone they had shot this seen well i think because when the man is talking on the phone but then he gets distracted by the girls in the windows and the consumer only hears the first part of the conversation then you keep getting distracted with the girl dancing in her window which gives the consumer the same effect that the actor is playing.

There are a lot of camera shots in this film it starts off with a establishing shot of a city and that straight away tells the consumer where they are and what surroundings there in. It then goes into a closeup on the cat this could show that something mysterious has or will happen and it gives the audience that tense feel. It then does a closeup on a man who's asleep and it focuses on his forehead because he is sweating a lot this could mean that he is very ill or has something on his mind then it says that it is just very hot in the room because it does a close up of the thermostat and it shows that it is very hot in that room. It the does a few one shots and two shots of people getting out of bed and this gives the audience the feeling that it is morning and that everyone is just getting out of bed or getting ready for the day that lies ahead. Then it follows onto a few closeups on the cast a man has on with the comical words written then it starts to zoom out and you can tell it was the man from earlier with all the sweat. After that it focuses on the camera that is all smashed up this could show that this is a very significant piece in the film and closeups of all the pictures his taken may suggest that he is a photographer. It then moves into a one shot of the man picking up the phone speaking to someone then the camera turns and shows people again this time the cameras tilted to show the scale of the buildings so if the camera was tilted up he would be looking up and if the camera was down he would be looking down. it then moves into a one shot of a woman getting ready and it stays on her for a long time so u can tell that shes significant to the man in the wheel chair. then the camera tilts down to some one who lives bellow the other woman an the woman is looking up.

Preliminary Task (Mystery Man)

We have planned to do the task in the courtyard outside reception. We have planned to film they walk through the room and we will film then from both sides of the rooms door to create a match cut. We will then make sure one of the characters walks up to the other and sits down on the bench next to them and then we will create a dialogue for them. We will use the 180 degree rule here so that the audience get a clear perspective of what the characters are saying/doing and their reactions. To make this feel more like a Thriller we will ensure the character who is walking is looking round as if he is a bit paranoid, this will give the scene a sense of tension and elements of suspense.

Dialogue:

*Shake Hands*
Man 1: Whats up man? You got the gear?
Man 2: Yeah but it's in my bag,
Man 1: Well... could you go get it?
Man 2: ...No!

*END*

The shots we will use include:

a pan as he walks across the room
a close up on his hand on the door handle
a second pan as he walks out the door into the courtyard
180 degree rule of conversation on bench (close-ups)

Match Cut

A Match Cut is a type of editing in a film. it can cut between to different objects, or two different compositions. This helps to establish the scene in a film. 

This picture shows that if someone was at the bottom of the stairs and they started to walk up first of all you would see the back of the persons head then it would flick so then you will see the person face walking up the stairs. This shows a match cut has taken place.

Drafting Titles/Opening Credits

We thought of a few different title names for our opening Thriller scene, heres what they were:

- Criminal
- No Mercy
- Unforgiven
- Vengeance
- Armageddon
- Invasion
- Whiplash
- Crusher
- Inhuman Carnage
- The Ripper
- Final Resolution
- Impact Zone
- No Surrender
- The Lockdown

These were just of few of the titles we came up with. Also we took into consideration thinking about opening credits, we thought it was important to make clear the names of specific contributes to the film:

- Director
- Producer
- Writers
- Distribution
- Main Actors
- Companies Involved

Others that may be included:

- Editors
- Soundtrack
- Prologue

180° Rule

The 180° rule is a rule that demonstrates the effective technique on moving the camera in only a 180 degree area. This is often used to focus on one individuals face then move around 90 degrees with this semi-circle to focus on the other individuals reaction. It is often used in a dialogue scene between two characters, it is a sufficient way to view the characters reactions and facial expressions with quick cuts that aren't to jumpy or sharp that just quick and smooth and an effective way to switch between characters. The image below shows the camera that can move between the 180 degrees, focusing on the two different characters. The 180 degree rule in motion.

Goodfellas Analysis

I have chosen to analyse the Goodfellas. This is a typical thriller because it starts off with a murder. 

the film starts off with three people travailing in a car and they hear a noise. they open the boot and you see an injured person lying there then a man walks up and stabs him then another guy shots him. This kind of shows that there in a gang. Then it goes into a narrator voice and a man who could be the main character is saying how he has always wanted to be a gangster and how he finds it better than being president.

The camera has a lot of different shots in this it starts off with a tracking shot of the car when it is moving along. it then goes into a close up of the three characters in the car but the closeup more focuses on the person who's driving so you would normally think the film is about him. it then does a closeup on the boot where the banging is coming from. after that it shows a close up of the person in the car getting stabbed which could mean that this is important. then it goes into a close up of someone standing in the window with a tilt on the camera this could show importance then theres another close up on the hand of the of a man shutting a car door and he had rings on his fingers this could show importance in a gang.

it starts off with a match cut of when it goes from the outside of the car and then the inside. then it moves into another jump cut when they are out the car and about to stab someone. then they use a final match cut when then man is looking down on the other man.

They use very posh clothing and this shows that they are from an upper class background because there wearing suits and you can also tell that it is very old because of the type of clothing they use and the props they use in the scene.

The sound in the clip starts off with hearing cars in the back ground this sets the scene that there on the motor way. they also use very good sound effects when the guy is stabbing the other guy. then when the titles are rolling they use jazz type of music which also sets the scene that its an old film. the old song just follows in for when the action starts which carries on setting the scene.

'Psycho' Character Analysis/Breakdown

The normal 'Psycho' character that is portrayed in a Thriller film is often the villian. He/she is also quite often the killer or murderer of the film, they are associated as the unusual and strange character with either no real motive, to represent just losing it, or with a very specific motive like revenge. They are considered as crazy and often are the backbone of a successful Thriller film. They may also be a criminal, with some sort of disturbing background that could lead to why he/she is now the psycho. The character also sometimes has some kind of mental disabilities again leading to the way he/she acts and sometimes, depending on the brutality of the film, a specific psycho character will have a weapon that is a trademark weapon to them, they are associated with that weapon. A few examples of this may be an axe or a chainsaw. This in some ways represents the average Thriller psycho and what they may appear as and actions that they may take to give them a sense of unusualness and strangeness. Here are two well known psycho characters from big films.

Thriller Screenshots Analysis

The first screenshot I am analysing is a scene for the film The Dark Knight. It is one of the most famous scenes from the film as the Joker character walks away from an exploding hospital. I find this shot so effective as it is a very psychotic looking character covered in face paint walking away with a highly emphasised sign saying 'Emergency' behind him. This is a wide-range, one shot, displaying a intense focus on the main character and his surroundings. As for Mise En Scene, the character, the Joker is very contrasting, this is because he is dressed in a hospital outfit that symbolises help but he has very unusual and somewhat disturbing face paint on, representing evil/villain.

This screenshot is taken from another well-known Thriller title, Pulp Fiction. It is of two men dressed very formally, which gives them elements of authority and makes them appear very important, they are also carrying guns each. This implies that they are maybe the undercover good characters, perhaps the police. The shot used here is a two-shot, it is used simply to focus on the two characters, to show the level of their importance and that they are the main characters to the audience.

This final screenshot is taken from the film Inception, it is of one of the totem's used in the film to define real life or dreams. This shot is a close-up on a specific object. This is maybe used to display the action of the object and to demonstrate the importance of the object. From my own knowledge I know that this playsa significant role in the film.

Pulp Fiction Analysis

I have chosen to analyse the beginning of pulp fiction. Pulp Fiction starts of with a scene of two people sitting in a cafe and there talking about a robbery that has taken place and how easy it was. then they talk about there own experiences of robbing licker stores and the man of the two people sitting down says that he dosn't want to rob licker stores anymore. The way they talks about the robbery it seems a bit comical and they take it as a joke. after that they start to talk about robbing the cafe they are sitting in and how no one would stop them and how there insured so it will be very easy. so it kind of follows a thriller type of film because there is a crime about to happen. then it roles into the credits.

i will know explain this in more detail i will start off with the way the opening scenes use the camera shots in the first few minutes of the film. it starts off with a two shot of the male and female just sitting there they use the 180 degrees rule where they switch back and forth between the two characters talking. Then it goes into a close up of the waitresses face and her smiling this has the effect that she dosn't know whats going on and that she seems a nice person. that also goes into a close up of the female robber showing that she is happy and is trying to act normal. after that it moves into an over the shoulder shot just to show the male talking. then it goes into a closeup of the two robbers and this makes it so that your more focused into what they are saying and its more in depth. it also goes into a closeup on when they kiss this seems to be significant so it could mean that there in a close relationship. finally it goes into a shot were there are the two main characters in the shot but it more focuses on the female this could mean that she is a more dominating woman.

There was not much on the editing of pulp fiction they use a match cut when the waitress offers the female coffee. There re only a few other cuts and that is when the two robbers are talking about robbing the restaurant. this creates the effect of showing how the people react and the also use slow cuts so it dosn't build up the suspense of the film. Then they use a freeze frame to show that the action is just about to begin.

The Mise en scene of this clip is that they are wearing american type of clothing with the open Hawaiian shirt. it is also american with the diner because it is designed in an old type of american diner also it seems that it was set in about the 80s because of the fashion trend then and the clothing type.

The sound in the clip is only when the credits role they have chosen two recent songs and this is good because then it appeals more to audiences because they can relate more to the songs and it keeps the audience interested.  But it is a very odd song to play in a thriller because you normally think of the song to be more mysterious but the song is upbeat and happy.

finally the credits of the film are very plain and in bubble type of writing but they play all the main characters in a slow pace but the co actors scroll threw very quickly this is because they are less important then the main characters. also the have the main title going off in the background as all the famous actors flash up on the screen.

Statistics Research (Inception)

Inception Statistics

I wanted to gain some more information about the film Inception because it was one of the most discussed Thriller titles in our questionnaire. From the statistics taken from the Inception trailer on youtube, it is clear that the audience is young male adults. This information is gathered from where the statistics show the audience that this particular video is most popular with. The video is very viewed by America, Russia and the UK, this information coupled with that taken from the main age group/gender can determine the target audience for the Inception film. This helps our group as it informs us and gives us a better idea on who our target audience should be for our opening Thriller scene.

Results of focus groups

As a focus,what do you think of when you hear Thriller film?

• Suspense
• Tension
• Fast paced 
• Action
• Psychological
• Death
• Intense 
• Bloody
• Murder
• Fast cutting
• Confusing
• Twist in plot
• Mystery

What is your thriller film?

• Inception x4
• Dark knight x2 
• Pulp fiction x2
• Da vinci code x2
• Se7en 
• Psycho
• Black swan 

What do you expect in the firsr five minutes?

• Murder
• Killing
• Introduction of character
• Suspense
• Fast music 
• Tense 
• Insane 
• Set the scene

Questionnaire Results

 

After doing research through 20 Questionnaires, it showed that the majority preferred Psychological Thrillers, and would rather go to see them over Action-based Thriller films. This helps us, as now we are sure that people would rather see Psychological Thrillers so when we are in the process of creating our opening 5 minutes to a Thriller film, we will be sure to focus more on developing it around a more Psychological base, than an action base.

This question told us what people want from a Thriller. There is no greater knowledge than the knowledge from audience, being aware of what they look for and more importantly what they want in a Thriller film. The results in the graph show how many times a specific feature, for example 'Suspense' what circled. From this information we can gather that everyone we asked voted for suspense. This tells us that in our opening Thriller scene we make, has to involve some elements of suspense. There is no way that after gaining this information we are positive that under no circumstances we can miss out suspense. From analysing the results we can also find out that a good plot and soundtrack are important, so we will consider this also in the creation of the opening Thriller scene, to add some good sounds/music and a twisted, sinister-like plot/story.

In this question, we asked people to put these genres of films in order from best to worst. We then looked at the data and if an individual were to put say 'Comedy' as their top one, comedy would gain a vote in this pie chart. We can tell that comedy is the most favorite genre, this came as no surprise. Although we were shocked to find out that thriller was a highly voted genre as well. This was good for us as we could compare the results from someone who put thriller as their top genre, and others who put a different genre as their top and see what they preferred and liked in their films. This meant we could incorporate it into our opening thriller scene.

Define A Thriller:

The majority of people found it difficult to actually identify what a Thriller is, this may be because it is not one of the most popular film genres out of the genres we investigated. Also all terms that were bought up were similar showing that people are unaware on how to define a Thriller. This is important to us because this shows that we can exploit the situation and create all new ideas and use the other feature mentioned to create a effective and creative Thriller opening scene.

What Do You Expect In The Opening Of A Thriller Film:

Our audience told us that some key ideas they would visualize whilst thinking of the opening scene of a Thriller film include: elements of suspense, elements of tension, they also would think of a murder scene, some fast-paced music building tension/suspense a lot of fast match cuts, a lot of sharp close-ups and also for lighting to be very dull and dark to create a Thriller scene. What we can learn from this is simply that we can include all these ideas or at least take them into consideration whilst making our opening Thriller scene, this will help us include not only great ideas that will make the scene better but also ideas that our target audience want to see.


Favourite Thriller And Why:

The main Thriller voted for where Inception, The Dark Knight and Pulp Fiction. This is alone good for us as we can now be sure to research these films in the near future so we can analyse how their opening scenes are made so effectively to set the scene whilst including the main elements of Thriller, suspense, tension and mystery. We can learn a lot from researching these films about our target audience. As for why the people claimed they liked these films were all ideas revolved around a good story/plot and a good sense of suspense/tension. This is good because we now know what our audience want, and that we have to try and include these feature into our opening scene to make it interesting and what our audience want to see.