A thriller is a film which uses suspense and tension to hook the audience and get their attention. There are many different sub-genres such as crime, mystery, film noir and psychological which is the sub-genre for our thriller opening. The thriller genre story line is mainly based around action and crime. If the thriller is based around crime then a murder is a typical event which takes place.We have chosen this because using the information from our research and vox pops this is the thriller which people find the most interesting. Psychological is unusual for our thriller as the main character is a teenager. The audiences expectations for a psychological thriller are suspense, action and it leaves the viewer on the edge.
Only three thriller films on the IMBD data base have teenagers in. This shows that with our thriller is unique and we are reaching out to a wider audience whilst challenging the conventions of a typical thriller film and the thriller genre. Another way in which we challenged the the thriller genre is by having a female antagonist, which is unusual as in thriller films the antagonist characters are usually male. We used a person a mentally ill person which features in a lot of thrillers such as Shutter Island. We then developed this idea by using a teenager who is mentally ill. This is from the way which the media has portrayed an image of “perfection” and how girls should look like.
There are many different shots such as long shots, midshots, close ups, over the shoulder shots and point of view shots. These are the common shots which are used frequently films of all genres. However there are typical shots and camera movements such as a tilt, close up, mid shot and long shot/extreme long shot which are frequently used in thriller films. A tilt is a camera movement which is where the camera tilts vertically up and down which gives a sense of size and height. It is used in many thriller, including out thriller opening to show the insanity of a person in our case the “alter-ego” character. Close-ups are camera shots where a certain feature or part of a subject takes up most of the frame and is often used to show detail. In thriller films close-ups are used to show hints to the storyline or often blood is shown as a close-up in thriller films. By showing a close up of blood it intrigues the audience, making them wonder what has happened for the blood to appear and want to continue watching the film. A midshot is also used in thriller films. It shows part of the subject in detail, usually from the waist up. This is used in thriller films when a character is speaking and often providing a crucial bit of information. A long shot is a shot where the subject takes up most of the full frame. It used in thrillers to show the environment the character is in. An extreme long shot is where the subject is not clearly visible to the audience. The purpose of this shot is to show the subjects surroundings and is often known as an “establishing shot.” In thrillers using a long shot can be good as the subject is not clearly visible, creating a sense of tension and mystery around the character. The typical editing in thriller films is fast paced and shots move from one to the next quickly.
Editing in thrillers can be used to help create tension and suspense. This can be done by adding different effects and changing how the scene and shot looks in general. A way in which they could do this is by changing the pace of the camera movement to show a dramatic scene. In our opening the editing is faced paced with intertwining shots. These shots flash forward to the blood on the magazines or the tilt of the alter-ego character herself. This gives the opening a more dramatic effect, building up the tension and suspense for the audience. We placed the shots of the blood at the beginning of the opening as it will make the audience want to continue watching and give a sense of suspicion and mystery.
Mise-en-scene is a term which is used to describe all visual elements in a single frame or shot. This includes actors, costume, make up, lighting/background, setting, camera work and VFX (visual effects. These are all key in any film, not just thrillers, to define the genre and help to create the scene. A common part of mise-en-scene which occurs in thrillers in props such as guns and knives. These stereotypically signify danger and are related to crime. In our opening thriller we used blood which is also a prop used regularly in thriller films. It helps to also create tension and suspense as the audience wonders where the blood is from.
Sound is also used in thrillers to make it thriller and create suspense. We asked in our vox pop “what helps to create suspense in thriller films?” and some of the answer which we got back was the sound. In films there is either non-diegetic sound or diegetic sound. Non-diegetic sound is sound which has been added in after the editing process. An example of this would be music which would be added in after. This is used to create suspense and tension and helps to get the audiences heart racing. Diegetic sound is the noise which comes from the scene and is not added in or edited after. An example of this would be actors voices. Synchronous sound is also used which is where the sound is synchronised with the object emitting the sound. This is helps to create tension during an important scene. In our thriller film we used both diegetic and non-diegetic sound. The non-diegetic sound is the music which we have added over the top of the opening. We created this music ourselves using garage band. The music starts of quite but then crescendo’s towards the end when they opening becomes more dramatic and when there is the revelation. We also have diegetic sound in our opening which is when the kitchen doors opens and makes a creaking noise. This is sound which we have not added in.
There are many conventions which are used to make an effective thriller opening. The shot types and movements which are the most effective are a mid shot, long/extreme long shot, close up and a tilt. A mid shot is effective as it shows when a character is speaking to another character so the audiences focus is purely on the person who is speaking. This is good if a character is delivering a crucial part of speech which gives the audiences hints/clues to the storyline. A longshot and also extreme longshot are important in thrillers as it shows the characters environment. This is important as the settings in the characters environment may be more important than the actual character in some shots. An extreme long shot is good for this as the subject clearly is not visible. In thrillers the narrative is constructed in many different ways.
For a thriller opening I think that narratives is one of the most important conventions. Having a unique and different story line from the start is important as you need to interest and capture the audiences attention from the start. If this does not happen then the audience may get bored. Also if they narrative is stereotypical to the thriller genre is may loose people’s interest. To make the narrative effective you need to think about your target audience and who you are targeting your opening/film at. At the start we found it difficult to find a narrative which was unique and like no other thriller film out there. After brainstorming we thought of using a teenager as only three popular thriller films have teenagers in.
How the shots are edited together are important to get an effective thriller opening. The shots in thriller films are edited together often intertwining. When shots intertwine it is normally because they are showing flashbacks. These flashbacks help the audience to either understand an event which is currently taking place. We have done this in our thriller film as it looks more effective. This makes it more interesting for the viewer to watch instead of having continuous straight cuts.
Sound is very important in thriller films. The use of non-diegetic and diegetic sound is key into creating a thriller films. Music, which is non-diegetic sounds, is important as it gets the audiences hearts racing. The music normally crescendo’s when it is getting closer to a dramatic scene or a key event is going to take place. Also sounds such as gun shots are commonly used which are a non-diegetic sound. Diegetic sound used in thriller films may be a slamming of a door, creaking of floorboards and the sounds of the actors voices. The slamming of a door and creaking of floorboards is a typical convention for thriller films as it takes the audience by surprise and connotes danger and fear.
The use of mise-en-scene is important for thriller films as it involves many important features in a film such as the actors, make-up, lighting, background. Some actors have star persona which means that the actor is renowned for acting in a certain genre. For example Leonardo Di Caprio who has featured in Shutter Island and Inception. For thrillers the lighting tends to be dark and gloomy, like it is in Se7en. This sets up the mood and atmosphere for the film and is a typical convention of the thriller film. In our opening thriller we were inspired by Se7en and had the lighting as dark as possible without making our thriller appear to grainy.
Some of the real thriller films and programmes which have inspired our thriller opening “Alter-Ego” is Dexter. Dexter is a television drama series in America about a man who works in forensics for the Miami Police Department. However the twist is although he works for the police, he himself is a serial killer. The storyline is very different to our thriller’s but the opening title sequence has inspired and influenced our work.
The use of blood in the opening sequence of Dexter is used a lot throughout the opening sequence. It has inspired and influenced us to make blood a main feature in our opening sequence for ‘Alter-Ego.” In Dexter the close up helps to focus in on blood and keep the audience watching as the main focus is the brutal killing of people, which the blood represents. The blood dripping into the skink leaves the audience thinking about what may have happened. This is similarly to our opening as the blood dripping onto the magazines leaves the audience intrigued as to what has happened and what is going to happening. This anticipation makes the audience continue watching as they want to know what happened. 
The editing in Dexter where there is shots of blood is fast paced, similarly to Alter-Ego where the shots of the blood dripping onto the magazine are fast paced and cut short to give it a ‘choppy’ quick effect. In our opening the shots also intertwine with other shots helping it to create more tension and suspense and adding to the audiences anticipation. In Dexter there is also a close up of the mans face, as there is also in our thriller. This shot excludes the background and you cannot see anything of the surroundings. This helps to make the audience wonder and think about what may be going on as you cannot see the background to tell. The close-up of a face in Dexter and also Alter-Ego is quite unsettling as it is not normal to see a face so close up. I think that this makes a shot and opening sequence rememberable and it will stick into the audience’s mind. This is good as it means that people will not only watch your thriller once but twice.
In Se7en the title of the film is quite unusual and stands out, it is also presented with the ‘V’ as a ‘7’ which makes it unique. We were inspired by this and as a group thought of a name which fits in well with out storyline also as we found that that was important as most thriller genres have titles which is something to do with the plot or storyline. We thought of ‘Alter-Ego’ which is also unique similarly to ‘Se7en.’ The typography in ‘Se7en’ and our thriller ‘Alter-Ego’ are very similar. The typography is ‘Se7en’ I think is very typical of the thriller genre as it is like a typewriter font and as is ours. This is because it is typical of the thriller genre to use a ‘typewriter’ font as it is used in many crime and mystery thrillers which is typical for the genre.
The first setting you see in ‘Se7en’ is an urban city setting which is typical for the thriller genre. We have not used this convention and have challenged conventions as there are not many thrillers that are based around teenagers and the setting where they live. We have set our thriller in a house in the countryside. This is because for our thriller’s storyline we thought it would be better suited inside a house in a typical teenage girls environment instead of filming it in a city. However in ‘Se7en’ the setting is quite dark and the natural lighting is minimal as there is no sun out in the shots. We have used this convention of the shots being as dark as possible without it being to grainy. This is because it gives a mysterious feel to them and sets up the storyline and what is going to happen. The setting of our thriller opening is not typical for thriller films, but the lighting in the shots is.
In the opening of ‘Se7en’ props are used throughout, and especially books. In the opening they are used to help set up what the film is about, and giving away hints to the storyline. This intrigues the audience to continue watching. It also helps to create suspense and tension. Similarly to our opening for ‘Alter-Ego’ we have used magazines instead of books as magazines are better suited for our target audience. magazines feature throughout the opening of our thriller and help to create tension, when the blood drips onto the magazine, and also gives and hints as to what the storyline is. We have used this convention as we thought it was a good idea to attract the audience to watch the thriller.
In the opening of ‘Se7en’ close-ups are used regularly throughout. This is to show you details which are important and the director wants you to see and take in as they may be important part of understanding the film. They are a popular shot to use in thrillers as they help to create suspense and tension as they do normally show a prop and detail which is important, as in our opening we use close-ups to show blood. The blood helps to create suspense and tension and it intrigues the audience and catches their attention making the wondering what has happened for the blood to appear. In our opening we have used the convention of using close-ups regularly throughout as they are a good shot to use to show detail and interest the audience and they are typical of the thriller genre.
The editing in the opening title sequence of ‘Se7en’ there is fast shots which are intertwining with each other. These are cutaway shots. We also were inspired by this and did it in our own opening title sequence. Fast shots help to give the feel of tension and suspense whilst also giving the idea that the opening is building up to a climax. Fast-shots are normally edited quickly which makes the audience struggle to picture what is going on which creates a sense of confusion. The intertwining shots help with these fast shots and to make them look effective. It also makes the opening look more interesting instead of just having a shot go on for a long time. The fast shots are typical of thriller films and the genre on a whole and we have used this convention.
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