Initial Ideas and Final Idea

As a group we started brainstorming ideas toget a general feel for the genre and film opening we want to make. Initially we did find it quite hard to get a good idea that we were all happy about, we didnt want to fall into the typical cliche student type film. We found that our physchological thriller ideas were very predictable. Our first major idea was an action thriller called on "abduction"
the plot was that two teenage girls start walking home from a party and night starts to fall. Through a serious of panning and tracking shots the two are introduced into a dark wooded area, suspense and tension starts to build (key convention to the thriller genre) as the editing pace would increase. Shady characters areseen to be floating through the trees in and out of shot; the two start to panic and begin to run home which then leads to a anti climax where they collide into an ordinary couple as they turn a corner. I think this idea is good as it has thriller conventions of suspense, tension and an anti climax however we didnt all agree that this type of opening is not as creative and original as we want ours to be.

We then spent a lunchtime fleshing out our individual ideas and began to form our 

final idea; we used the concept of being "abducted" an formed a more complex plot with a strong narrative which hopefully will allow the audience to connect and relate to a further degree. The opening would not be fully understood because more of the plot would-be revealed later during the film; I feel that having this deeper story gives more depth to the opening.

The first plot point revolves around the family being "marked" by a pyschopath type figure; with an unhealthly obsession with the family, marked being the possible film title. Our opening starts with the son being abducted/kidnapped by this stealthy, dark figure and then swiftly moves onto a montage of footage showing how this begins to affect the family and their relationships. As a group we had started to put these ideas down into a storyboard where we found our concepts and visualisation of this plot was slightly different individually however this proved a positive as we decided to create the ideas we all agree on and when it comes to our animatic and later production we can evaluate some of the scenes and whether they fit in the opening and present meaning towards the audience. We used some flashbacks in our sequence to demonstrate what has happened and present time shots to portray what is happening currently to the family.
The openings continuity will have to be clear enough for the audience to follow, as the flashbacks may disrupt this.

The sound we decided upon was a musical score soundbridge across all clips introduced first by the sons ipod song, with the music contrasting the onscreen action - we thought that this will create an eerie effect as the music is slightly upbeat but mournful when paired with whats onscreen. Something similar to "Watchmen"'s opening in which upbeat local music is played over a graphic fight scene. As the opening sequence ends the ipod is seen slowly falling to the floor where then the music stops as rain starts to hit the screen, and the light starts to dim. The connotations of this shot is that hope for the son to return home is slowly fading and the music finishes which represents this also.

To evaluate our group I would say that we all played specific roles in this idea creation progress with each member adding constructively. I am happy that we developed our first idea into something we are all more happy about. The idea we have decided on is in my opinion quite original however may be very difficult to get the way we want it.

Camera

We experimented using camera's we attempted to film a variety of different shots. These included longs shots, close ups, low angles and high angles. I found that panning with the camera's was harder than it looked and it took a steady hand and a few tries to get a steady pan. The tripod stands we used helped this process alot as you can adjust the holdings to let you keep a steady angle, pan or height.

Primary Research

For my primary research I will ask people to fill out my questionnaire which I created on Survey Monkey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RXK25ZT
SurveyMonkey is a good site as it allows me to create a questionnaire easily and also lets me to create graphs with the results.

The BBFC

The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is what regulates films in britain, the BBFC rates each film's content under its relevance to plot and how appropriate it is for what age group/audience.
The BBFC rates films into the following catorgories: U PG 12 12A 15 18 R18.

15:
15 rated certificate tend to allow moderate violence, gore and sexual activity. However not in explicit circumstances and it must be of relevance. Drug taking is not banned however it cannot be promoted to be seen in a positive way.

18:
18 rated certificates permit a wide range of gore, violence, sexual activity and drug taking (not to be promoted.) The difference between the two certificates lies not in context of themes; mainly in explicity.

Resources:
http://www.bbfc.co.uk/downloads/pub/Guidelines/BBFC%20Classification%20Guidelines%202009.pdf

Adobe Premiere Pro

We began to look at the editing programe, Adobe Premiere Pro. Due to previous experience on the mac computers at digital art GCSE level I had some knowledge of how they work. The interface and the feel of the program is very similar to Adobe After Affects, another program I became familiar with. During the lesson I did began to understand the process of piecing together and editing video clips. Firstly we imported the clips of a previous A-level coursework for the task; we began to order them chronologically and rename them for their relevance. Premiere Pro has a nice editing screen where the clips can be dragged and dropped into for quick and easy "cutting and cropping." Sound can also be implemented ontop of the clips.

The program also offers the features such as how to create titles for the sequence, these titles are then superimposed onto the film clip. We then learnt how to position and intergrate this with other features and transitions such as fades and dissolves. One of the great aspects about this program is the ability to edit the frames per second thus providing precise and accurate editing.

note: *record video of using premiere pro- upload.

Thrillers Overview

The thriller film genre revolves around creating suspense for the audience. The different sub genres begin to follow mixed codes and conventions however a thriller usually tries convey a deeper meaning to the plot.

The director of a thriller may try to interpret a combination of extreme long shots and longs shots to establish the location; or another convention is the use of alot of close ups. The use of this is to convey a sense of importance to the audience.
Furthermore from some of the thrillers ive analysed the directors use of mise en scene can be critical in establishing the genre or sub-genre for the audience. To do this the director may use iconic signifiers to create meaning; one example would be a black and white suit perhaps aligned with the James Bond figure. A director may choose to reinforce these signifiers with other props such as pistols, used to further link into the "james bond" icon.
Other aspects of mise en scene that are often explored in thrillers is the use of low key lighting, I have found that a some of these; specifically crime and pyschological thrillers use this to create a mysterious setting. Furthermore the uses of the colour red, black and white are predominant in thrillers, this is because they connote danger and mystery.

From what ive analysed, thriller films try to use sound to either establish an ambience for the location set in the film and to give a sense of verisimilatude for the audience. Or to create mood for the audience, the village for example used high pitched string instruments to implement an uncomfortable feeling for the viewers. The non diegetic music is often used to build suspense, so instruments such as drums can be used to raise the suspense in the scene.

Editing effects such as fades and dissolves are a common feature in thriller opening sequences. This is because it keeps the pace slow to build suspense. The titles in thrillers are generally superimposed onscreen and tend not to be "in your face." What I mean is that the titles arent usually exploding up into whole screen much like that of a typical action movie. The purpose of this is so that the attention of the audience is not diverted from whats happening in the film.

The feel I get from thriller films is that everything is kept subtle, nothing is over the top. Another thing is that the location does not change too much, if at all. The directors attempt to mix the various aspects of cinematography to help create suspense, interest or mystery.

Walk On The Wild Side

Walk on the Wild Side directed by Edward Dmytryk, opens with a slow zoom into a black cats face - the cats eyes central in the shot. The importance of this could possibly be connoting mystery; an aspect iconic to the thriller genre. The use of low key lighting creates a lot of shadows in the pipework, with the cat cautiously slinking out of the darkness could be semiotic of a devious crime thriller. Binary Opposition is a common feature during thriller openings, the camerawork often positions the black cat against white backgrounds. This could connote that there is a wild side to places and people. The title of the film itself could reflect this; furthermore as the camera is tracking the cats journey it passes past and through a fence, symbolic of someone in the film not restricted by boundaries.

Throughout the sequence the camera is slowly tracking the cats journey. With the non diegetic drumbeat slowly increasing it helps to creates a slow pace to enhance tension; this aspect has been reinforced with the editing, fades have been used to further slow the pace of the opening down. As the cresendo takes hold, and the two cats fight; the edits quicken and the whole sequence is a rush, the two cats fighting could dennote a territorial motive for the plot later in the film.

Casino Royale

Camera

The sequence opens with the iconic shot down the barrel of the gun with the blood slowly dripping down. The genre is established as an action - thriller hybrid when the protagonist (James Bond) turns and shoots at the camera, an effect of this is would be to engage the audience into the film quickly.

Editing

The editing helps to introduce Bond as a protagonist; the opening started in black and white which then turned into full colour after he shot the villain. This could connote that James Bond is dangerous yet mysterious. The use of CGI enhances the opening experience for the audience whilst still conveying meaning. For example the imagery of Bond beating up men and the graphic match of the playing card 7 into 007 shows he is a secret agent.

Mise En Scene


Throughout the extract this theme of violence is reinforced by the gun fights and combat. The director has also chosen to use iconogrophy to help the audience understand what will come later in the narrative, using hearts as bullets, playing cards and casino wheels. The iconogrophy also defines the genre of the film. Items such as guns and the black and white suit are often related to thrillers. To further reinforce the films genre and theme, dark toned colours and reds and blacks are used to symbolize danger and violence.


Sound

The sound in the extract is predominantly the song "You Know My Name" but sounds such as gunshots are used to reinforce the genre and onscreen action. The song itself is quite loud and builds up over the course of the opening, the song reflects the action - thriller genre in the sense that it gets quite explosive however remains meaningful. You know my Name - Bond reintroduced to the public.

The Village

The Village, directed by M. Night Shyamalan opens with the camera tracking aimlessly through tree's branches. The audience is made to feel as if they are wandering through a forest, connotations of a forest could suggest being lost and perhaps the fear of the unknown. Instantly viewers are thrown into the unknown and added with the slightly disorientating effect of the camerawork, this creates the eerie situation iconic to thrillers. The fact that no characters or life is shown in the sequence could connote emptiness or desolation. Low key lighting also adds to this with the feeling of sadness.
Further reinforcing this is the slow fades, the titles superimposed on a black background; the black and white iconic of horror. Also the director could want all the attention to focus on the forest and what they can see when taken back to more tracking of the trees.
Non diegetic high pitched eerie music rises and falls in pitch whilst a low drum beat gradually speeds up. Matching this onscreen the tracking speed increases and so does pace of cuts. This increasing cresendo creates suspense, one important aspect to thrillers.

Sin City

Sin City Introduction:


Sin City, directed by Robert Rodriguez is a conventional thriller film in the sense that it follows a majority of the codes and conventions of the thriller genre. The opening sequence starts with an establishing ELS of a cityscape to set the scene, a city being conventional to the thriller genre. The director has also decided to use city sounds such as car horns to create an ambience for the film, this thus heightens the audience's sense of verisimilitude. Other non-diegetic sounds are used such as thunder to signify a sinister situation; this is reinforced with the rain to bring forth the iconic aspect of stormy weather. Slow paced non-diegetic classical music is used to create a sombre score. Rodriguez has chosen this music because it slows the pace of the film down, a slow pace being iconic to thriller openings as it creates a sense of mystery. To reinforce this Robert Rodriguez has minimalized the amount of cuts used as this further draws out the opening.

The sequence is in black and white with low key lighting to create shadows and mystery; these are conventions of the thriller genre. However the director also uses the colour red to suggest further meaning. The lady's dress and her lipstick is red, this signifies passion and danger because her lips are seen to be seductive but her open backed dress shows her vulnerability thus suggesting danger in the future. The use of refined colour is iconic to thrillers openings because it creates a sense of mystery.

A long shot is used to centralise the female character as she enters the frame in a elegant red dress on the rooftop. This is followed by a mid shot showing her looking out on the city whilst a man approaches her from behind. The fact that the lady is holding her arms whilst leaning on the balcony signifies her to be frail, however it could also denotes she is cold. The man in the black and white suite is typical to the thriller genre much like a "James Bond" type character. Close ups are used to show her accepting a cigarette, another used to show the man lighting it; none the less smoking is typical to the thriller genre as a whole because it connotes a "cool" atmosphere. After the man shoots the lady, the gun can be seen as an iconic aspect of thriller genres and further suggests Sin City to be a crime based thriller.

The Birds

The opening sequence of the birds features binary opposition in the form of black and white silhouettes of crows frantically flying past the screen; the dark birds symbolising fear against the white purity of the background. This aimless flock of birds creates an uncomfortable feeling for the audience. To reinforce this it is matched with the parrallel sound of the squaking. The crows represent fear and death, this is iconic of the thriller genre. The titles are superimposed on top of this, in a cold blue font, the introduction is unwelcoming as the titles are pecked away.

The screen then fades into a city scene, the fade itself iconic of a thriller as this connotes mystery and slows the pace down. The ambience of a bustling city is used to establish a normal working day, a train wipes across the screen for the camera to pan whilst following the female character. The city buildings and high camera angle represent the lady to be insignificant to the scale of her surroundings. The pace is slow as few cuts are used to show her entering the bird store.

What is a Thriller?

The thriller film genre promotes suspense, tension and anticipation aiming in the hope that it will keep the audience on the "edge of their seats."

There are many different thriller sub-genre's, each with its own expectations from its audience, the genre branches into science fiction, action, crime, western and film noir. Some thrillers are mix of two, a hybrid thriller allows the film to take multiple conventions of popular genres such as action and science fiction to appeal to a wider audience.

The character in a thriller is someone the audience can be drawn into, as the film develops hopefully the audience's understanding of that person increases. Characters in thrillers include a variety of individualistic personalities that will often feel out of place in there world. An example would be criminals, cops and drifters to psychotic individuals, or perhaps a mix. The personality of the main role is often seen reflected or harshly contrasted in their envrioment and location.

Resources:
http://www.filmsite.org/thrillerfilms.html