Sound

Sound

 Sound is important in films as the different music or sound that is used within films can create the atmosphere needed to make the audience react how the directors have aimed for them to react. The sound that is used can give away clues to the audience as to what type of film they are going to be watching. It is very important to use music that s relevant to the film genre. If the music does not fit the film then it can ruin the whole feel of the film. For example, if there is a thriller film and the music that has been used is an up beat happy piece of music then it can change the whole perception of the film.

 Sound is particularly important to use within thriller films as the music can create an atmosphere and create a suspense for the audience. In some cases, the music that is used in thrillers, can scare the audience more than what is actually happening in the scene.

 For our thriller i am going to use a piece of music during the opening credits. i am going to aim to make this music eerie and strange. i want the music to have these particular points as i feel that by using music like this it will reflect my thriller. Within my thriller there are strange goings on and the atmosphere i have tried to create is eerie.

 http://ccmixter.org/files/_ghost/19327
i have considered this sound to include within my thriller as i feel that the sound will go well with the images that we use. My thriller has ghosts and weird things that go on and this music has an eery atmosphere to it.

Group storyboards

need to redo story boards as idea was changed.

Individual storyboards

need to redo story boards as ideas were changed.

Evaluation

Evaluation

 

Target audience is important because it allows film creators to create a film that includes all the conventions relevant to that particular age group. It can help the creators differentiate between what would make an appropriate film for a child to watch or a for an adult to watch.
   We carried out a different variety of research to try and get different information from a group of people. we did this because we feel that it was the best way to make sure that we could get as much information as possible from different sources. When we got the information together that we had got it gave us a clear understanding as to what is expected in a thriller film from a range of different ages. It gave us an insight to the difference between the age groups and what is appropriate in the films. We gave out a questionnaire which gave us clear information as what they want 

One form of research we carried out was a questionnaire. This research particularly helped us to identify the different age groups in thrillers. this helped us to decide on a target audience for our own thriller. We chose to use the age group of a '15' because we feel that this is the best age to target as this can have very scary elements but not make it too disturbing, also the amount of blood and gore that is shown within the thriller must be limited. this aspect helps us in a way as it may be hard to re create without advanced props and lighting. by using the age group '15' we can still convey a scary story line with strange paranormal activity minus the violence.


another form of research we carried out was the vox pops . This was a very affective way to collect various information and display it in a way that is clear for us to see the results. By doing the vox pops the most useful information that we found out was what ages would like to see what in their thrillers. From our results we could see that the younger generation would much more prefer a more subtle take on our thriller, with very little blood and gory, the story line for this age group was to be scary however it could not be to disturbing. The older the ages got the more blood, gore and violence they were willing to watch. Their story lines were to be more disturbing and twisted as they preferred to have a story line which involved a mystery of some form which they could really get involved with when watching the thriller.

By doing this researh helped our group to understand what aspects of thrillers are essential to include. It gave us a clearer view of how to interpret the different points correctly in order to create a good thriller fullfilling everyones exectations of what a good thriller should be.

Production roles

Production Roles

During the making of a thriller film there are many different roles and responsibilitys that need to be filled. Some of these are the camera man, the actors, the editors and directors.

Each of these roles have a number of responsibilites, the camera man has to ensure that they know the different shots which are going to be needed to create a good thriller film. We have chosed Will to be  our camera man as we feel that he has had the most experience with filming and using the camera and also he is aware of the shots that are going to be used to create the tense atmosphere for out thriller.

The Actors responsibilies is to make sure that when they are acting they are playing their role properly and sensibly. They have to ensure that they are talking clearly throughout so the camera can pick up the sound. The actors have to be able to put themselves into the situation in which they can make it as realistic and belivable as possible. Me, Brittany and Tayler are the actors in our thriller. We have chosen our charachters carefully as we feel that by me ans Brittany both being girls we are almost immediatly seen as vulnerable charachters in the thriller. Tayler at the end is playing the part of the demon, we feel that Tay is the best person for this role as he comes across domineering in the thriller and that was the perception we was trying to give off.

The editors of the films are there to select the best bits of all the shots to make it the best it can be. They can edit all the different scenes to make it as belivable and realistic as it can be. We have decided that within our group we will all fullfill the role of the editors as we can put all of our ideas together to hopefully achieve the best outcome.

The directors job is to tell the actors what to do. They do this as they are watching from the audiences perspectives and can see what works well and what doesnt. They have complete control over everything that is involved in the making of the film. Our director is Will again. As he is the one who is incharge of the camera he can see what the final product is going to look like therefore this way we will be able to change any acting techniques or the use of props when needed.

this research into the production roles has helped me to establish the difference in resposibilties for each individual role.



History of thrillers

History Of Thrillers

 

 

The main aim of all thriller films is to create a rush of  emotions, fear,panic and excitement for the audience and keep them on the edge of their seats at all times. Thrillers are always scary and tense, however there tends to be a less amount of blood and violence in them, they are more based around strange things, for example, pshycological thrillers, crime thrillers and mystery thrillers. The political  thriller was made popular after the assaination of the American president Kennedy.

 

 

 The earliest thrillers were by Alfred Hitchcock. In 1926, the first thriller that he made was a silent film called 'The Lodger.' a suspensful story of jack the ripper, which was qucikly followed by 'Blackmail.' in 1929. Black mail was Hitchcock and Britians first sound film.

 

 

A thriller film that has been banned was 'Natural Born Killer.' It was released in 1994, directed by Oliver Stone. The film stars two charachters who had both suffered from very traumatic childhoods, had fallen inlove and together they became mass murderers. The film start Woody Harrelson and Julliette Lewis. The film was seen as being unnapropriate as it is seen to glorify murdering and give of the impression that to do so is the correct thing to do. The film also created 'Copycat Crimes.' From the moment of the release, the film has been repeatedly accused of being the cause of numerous murders in North America. Including the Columbine High School Massacre. This was a school shooting in 1999. During the massacre a total of 12 students were shot and 1 teacher. A further 21 students were injured. This event was seen as being inspired by the 'Natural Born Killers' thriller.

The fil was banned from theatrical distribution in Ireland, however it has since been unbanned. It was banned in the USA due to the amount of violence within the film.

 

 

Se7en is a 1995 American thriller filmm written by Andrew Kevin Walker. It stars Bradd Pitt and Morgan Freeman. The two actors play the parts of 2 homocide detectives who become heavily involved in the case of a serial killer whose precisly planned murders harmonize with the seven deadly sins; gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, pride, lust and envy. This thriller will create an atmosphere of suspense troughout the entire film as the audience are engaged and involved with the case themselces.

 

Another thriller that i will look at is 'The Strangers.' This is another American thriller film written and firected by Bryan Bertino, starring Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman. This film is about a young couple who are terrorized by 3 masked strangers who decide to intrude in the couples remote summer home where they are both staying. This film particurlary leaves the audience on the edge of their seat at all times as they can really relate to what is happening in the film. Nearly everyone has had to stay somewhere on their own and become paranoid of someone or something being in there with them.

 

By doing this research it will help me to uderstand the best conventions of a thriller film and also how thriller films have developed over the years. Also this will help me to differentiate between the conventions of a thriller and a horror and how they are different.

 

 

                                                                  The Strangers trailer

 



 

 

Seven trailer

 

 

 



Opening scene narrative

Opening scene narrative

We will start the opening scene by having me and brit sitting together having a normal converstaion with a ouija board next to us considering weather to do one or not.

  Once we decide to do it it show me and brittany sitting there with the glass and calling in all good spirits, after a couple of seconds brittany starts to move the glass around the table and and complain that its not working. Brittany gets impatient with the ouija board and removes her finger from the top of the glass, I say to her that she cant do that as by doing this it allows any bad spirits into the room with us.

  Me and Brit put our fingers back on to the glass and wait for a momen, once the glass begins to move it scares both of us and we both think that one another is playing a trick on us. However, once we realise that the glass is moving completly by its self, we both take our fingers off and jump back from the table. A few minutes later the lights start to flicker in the room and things fall over and there are strange noises. Me and Brittany jump up and start to run around the room. When we are turned round Tayler (the demon) is standing by the window behind us but me and brit cant see him. the fact that we cant see tayler in the shot creates a sense of panic and engages the audiece in the thriller as they will feel the need to interact with the charachters and tell them to get out of the room.
 The room is left in complete darkness for a few moments, when the lights turn back on both me and Brit have been tied together on two chairs back to back. Tayler the demon is now in the room and standing above Brittany. He is holding a knife to her and Brittay screams and the opening sequence cuts there. The props we have used are conventional for a thriller film as we have used a knife which is assosiated with danger and murder in the correct context, we have used socks to tie round our mouths and ropes round our wrists to keep us together. The fact that we are both tied up and i am facing away from the window where tayler is still unaware that he is in the room and that he is standing over brittany creates suspense and tension of what is going to happen next.

Planning editing styles

Editing Styles

Editing is important in trillers because it can create the atmosphere and sets the scene for the audience. With the same types of editing through out the film it can make it look like its flowing through out the film, this can help the creators to show the genre more clearly by using sharp edits and jump cuts can show that the film is meant to be scary and make the audience jump.


The first edit that we are going to include will be a slow edit, this will be used after the ouija board has all gone wrong and me and Brittany are running around the room trying to find out what is going on. At this point Tayler (the demon) has walked into the room behind us and me and brit slowly turn round and see tayler and scream at this point is where the opening scene ends leaving the audience on a cliff hanger. This particular edits creates a tension for the audience as they have seen what is behind us and are wondering what is going to happen to us before we turn round and see the demon.


Another edit that we are using involves linking shots, this is where a number of all our shots are qucikly put together to create a paniked atmosphere. We are using this edit because i think it will work best after me and Brittany have done the ouija board and it has gone wrong. There are many different events happening at one time in the room including objects falling over and lights flickering and strange noises, so this edit would be the best for us to show the different concequences of the ouija board. This edit is good for out thriller because it is so busy and theres many different things happening at once that it keeps the audience on edge throughout the scene.


We will also use jump cuts, this is when the demon is appearing behind us and it is going from our facial expressions, then back into the room where taylor can be seen behind us. This edit will also create a sense of panic and worry for the audience as they can see something that us girls cant and may feel they need to interact with us and tell us to get out. Also having tayler appear behind us and we cant see him makes the audience think what is going to happen next, that is when the opening scene ends and the girls turn to see the demon.


These edits are conventional to thrillers as all of them involve panic and fear throughout. They are leaving the audience on the edge of their seats and are paniked by whats happening. The edits creates suspence and tension.

opening credits

Opening credits for a thriller film are important because they are the very first thing in the film seen by the audience and they can give the first impression of a film, it can also show what type of genre the film is which gives the audience an insight of what they are going to be watching. .

The opening credits of Se7en

These opening credits are very well done because they relate to the thriller and instantly creates a suspense about the thriller.

the credits are mainly black and white but occasionally flashes of red. The white writing contrasts the black mysterious background, the flashes of red represent danger and blood which creates a sense of fear through out the credits.
The credits are shown small and flickery, this shows how were their similar to flickering lights which are associated with panic or anything to do with danger.
the music that goes with the credits is very eery and mysterious, the non diegetic sound matches what's in the scene, where there is a marker pen the noises are matching the image.



The sixth sense opening credits

This opening credit sequence is similar to the other one because it has flickering writing as well and music that is very mystical and eery this music matches the film as it is a sixth sense, the music sounds twinkly which would associate the music with a child. The main character of the thriller is a young boy who is able to see dead people.




Our credits for our thriller film have been inspired by se7en. We chosen these particular credits because we feel that the whole idea of our credits are similar to what we have seen in se7en.

This is the final font that we have chosen to use for our thriller. We feel that because the font is unclear and its blurry, it reflects the story line of our thriller. Our thriller includes a spirit that has come from the ouija board that we are playing tha goes wrong. Throughout the thriller the demon is unclear and all that is seen of him is an outline standing behind the doors. this is similar to the font as you can only see the outline of the letters and the rest is blurred.

filming schedule

Filming Schedule

A filming schedule is important to consider as it helps the actors to keep in the right timings and ensure everything is done how they have palnned it originally. It can keep in order all the scenes and show a clearer understanding of what will need to happen.

Risk assesment

Risk Assesment

It is important for us consider a risk assessment before filming to ensure that it is completely safe for us to do so.  There are many different hazards that can cause harm to the actors involved in the filming. It is also important to have these safety points in mind during filming because if something goes wrong it can ruin the whole scene and everything has to be re done. This can be an inconvenience as the whole scene will have to be re filmed but also the actor can be hurt or injured.

Carrying out a risk assessment can help us to determine when and where would be the safest place to film and the safest time to film with the least chance of any risk of injury.

preliminary task

We used our priminarily task to improve our skills of editing and using appropriate camera shots that would be used in a thriller film. Our preliminary task widened our understanding of what different aspects there are for the creation of a thriller. We were able to experiment using the tripod and also free hand shots. We also now understand how many different shots are needed to allow the clip to be edited properly and to make the clip make sense.

 Here is our preliminary task me, Brittany, Taylor and Will made ;

Planning Cinematography

Planning Cinematography

Camera shots are  important in any film because they can create the scene and the atmosphere. If there are jerky or fast moving shots can show that it could be a thriller film. If there is slow motion shots or slow panning shots that can show that it is a romantic film.

One of the camera shots that are used in films is high angle, this is when the camera is positioned above the object and this makes the image look a lot smaller. We will use this shot when when me and Brittany are on the floor and thinking of planning the  ouija board.

Another shot which will be used is zooming in- this is when the camera moves in and out of an object to create importance and to draw the audiences into closer relationship with the subject. We are using this shot when the movie comes to an end when taylor appears outside as the ghost and he is behind me and brittany and we have no idea he is there.

hand held shot is used to produce a jerky, jumpy and unsteady shots which can create a sense of uncertainty or chaos. We are going to use this shot when me and brittany first start to realise that strange things are starting to occur in the room, using this shot in our thriller will create a sense of pandemonium. this is when we decide to do a ouija board and there is an element of panic in the room.

Another shot that we are using is a panning shot when the ghost starts to move around the room and then the camera is trying to pick up the ghost and the audience can be involved in the thriller by seeing what is going on and seeing what the ghost is doing.

Overall my target audience will build a relationship with the actors from how the camera shots interact with the actors and

character representation

Charachter Representation

Characters in thrillers include posessed people, demons, devil, ghosts, convicts, criminals, stalkers, assassins, down-on-their-luck losers, innocent victims , prison inmates, menaced women, characters with dark pasts, psychotic individuals, terrorists, people involved in twisted relationships, world-weary men and women, psycho-fiends, and more. The themes of thrillers frequently include terrorism, political conspiracy, pursuit, or romantic triangles leading to murder. 

  It is important for thriller films to include a few of these characters as these are the people that the audience are scared of in the real world. these people are seen as feared individuals in society therefore they are always used in thrillers as the audience is able to relate to the fear of the innocent victims in the film. It is also important to include a variety of different charachters within a film because they keep the audience hooked on the film and keep it interesting or it is most likely the audience will get bored.


Tayler Coe
16
Male
White
White British
he is the demon in the play that is haunting the girls at the sleepover
he will not appeal to the audience as he is the 'evil' one that is haunting a 16 year old girl at a sleepover.

Will Stacey
16
Male
White
White British
Will is the director and camera man in the narrative
Will is not applicable to appeal to the audience as he will not be viewed in the thriller scene.

Brittany Terrelonge
17
Female
Brown
White British
Brittany is one of the girls in the sleepover that does the Ouija board but dosen't end up getting haunted.
I think brittany will appeal to the audience at the start but as it gets later in the scene they will realise how loud and annoying she is and will grow sick of her.

Katie O'Shaughnessy
16
Female
White
White British
I am the same as brittany playing a girl at the sleepover but i am the one haunted by the demon.
I think i will completely appeal to the audience as she is innocent but not quiet enough to annoy the audience the fact that the innocent one and am being targeted will allow the audience to feel for her and connect to her emotions.

mise en scene

mise-en-scene


iconography- we will be bedroom including a bed lighting  desk chair and bathroom, this links with our thriller idea as our title is paranormal sleepover which in the title suggests would most likely have to be staged in a bedroom and therefore that is the idea we are going for. Extra props included will be an Ouija board which links in with the paranormal aspect of our title, this all intwines to make our opening scene relevant to our group narrative. This is conventional to thriller films as the set of the bedroom will be relevant to our title and can be staged easily with space.

facial expressions and body language - our facial expressions and body language at the start of the scene will be happy and joyful as anyone young teenager is when there with their friends at a sleepover telling secrets etc, but towards the end of the scene when the mishaps start to occur it will change completely and the expressions will turn into scared and shocked. This will link into thriller films as the face will change showing shock and horror towards the audience which will allow the audience to be able feel the emotions the cast are going through.

location - We will be using a premier inn in Buckhurst Hill as we need a bedroom with space to use and the room at this hotel matches our exact requirements for our opening scene.

costumes -  We will be using 'lazy' clothing such as tracksuits and pyjamas as we are at a sleepover however the demon will be dressed in all black with a hood so the face in concealed creating an enigma towards our scene.

lighting- Our lighting will start fairly light with secondary lighting surrounding the room but with the plot and when the demon comes the room will become smokey with the back light shining through the window which will give the effect of something scary happening which links in completely with thriller films.

colours -

position of characters - The main cast consisting of the girls will be in the centre of the camera throughout the whole of the scene however when the demon arrives he will be able to be seen in the background of the shot, this will link in to the thriller genre as the demon is behind the main cast showing how he may be haunting them and it was be seen by the audience as creepy or eery.

Pie Charts

Pie Charts

Our group decied to use pie charts to show our results for our questionaire, as we felt that this is the clearest way to display the information we found out about thriller films. It is the easiest form of chart to read information quickly and easily and is visibly the most affective form of research.

Questionnaires

Questionnaire

 

 

 

 

Questionaires are a very good way for the public to voice their own opion on a topic. Our questionaire covered many of basic questions which would be asked and these are all important in the making of our thriller film. Our questionaire helped us as a group a lot as it showed us the different types of themes and how much blood and gory people enjoyed watching. Many of the answers were different as we asked a group of people who varied in age, ranging from 12 to mid 40s. This helped us to understand the difference between what a 12 year old would expect to see in a thriller to what a 30 year old would. Also by doing this it helped us to know what sort of age group we are looking at making our thriller for and what would be appropriate to include. Our questionaire gave us an insight to the preffered themes and story lines of a thriller and what would be best for us to do.

 

Here is an example of our questionaire which we asked 40 people their answers;

 

1. Are you male or female?

Tick the selected box below

  Male     Female

2. How old are you?

Tick the selected box below

  15-18     19-21     22-25       26+

3. Within a thriller film, what would you see is your preferred age certificate?

Tick the selected box below

 

    12           15          18

4. What advertisement would you say attracts you into a thriller the most?

Tick the selected box below

    TV      Posters    Recomm- Other

                               endation     

5. What are you expectations of a thriller film?

Circle your choice below

Flashbacks, main characters as hero, protagonist/ antagonist (goodie/baddie), night scenes, car involvement, weapons, blood or other

6. What type of sound would you say works best within a thriller film?

Circle your choice below

Tension building, suspense sound, various sound effects, horror sounds or other

7. What characters do you intend to watch within a thriller film?

Circle your choice below

One main character, 2 characters (male/female), group of main characters, young characters, old characters

8. What well-known actors are expected to be seen in a thriller movie? Make a lost of the selected actors below

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

9. What setting within a thriller film would you say is most effective?

Circle your choice

A creepy house, graveyard, outdoors, haunted room, street, alley way or other

10. What other genres do you think works well when combined with a thriller film?

Tick the selected box below

 

Comedy  Action/  Crime     Other

              Adventure

11. Would you prefer a thriller film to start with a story line and work its way through to the main plot or start with a scary opening and use flashbacks throughout the rest of the film?

Complete your answer on the dotted lines below

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

We chose to survey 40 people in total as this gave us a wide range of people of male and female of all different ages, this way we can see what would have been appropriate for a person of 12 or a person of 30. It made it clear to see what people expect to see and what they preffer to watch in a thriller. We shared this information within our group and it made it easier for us to decide of a theme and age group which we would aim our thriller for.

Vox Pops

Vox Pops

We decided to use vox pops as part of our research for out thriller film as we felt it was the best way to find out exactly what people expect from thriller films. We can easily recall the information that was given to us from the people that we interviewed from the recordings.

 We were able to ask all different people from a varity of different ages ranging from 12 to 40. Each individual gave us a different opinion on what they prefer to see in a thriller film, this helps us to consider all the different points and make our thriller film sutible for all audiences. If we can take into account everyones different opinion then we can make our thiller film want to be seen by everyone, the vox pops showed us that because everyone has their own opinion of what they think is best in a thriller, it would be best for us to try to include all different aspects of thrillers including violence and gory scenes but also including paranormal activity involvinng spirits and demons, but insuring that we dont over crowd the thriller and make it loose sense and the auduience are unable to understand the story line of the thriller.

Narrative theory

• In media terms, narrative is the coherence / organization given to a series of facts. As humans we need to have a clear structure and things in a particular order to make sense of things. in everything we see and do we expect there to be a beginning a middle and an end. 

there are 3 main theories which are;

Vladimir Propp, a Russian critic, who was around in the 1920s believes that narratives are not important fir the story line, he equilibriums and disequilibrium. Every narrative should have a beginning , middle and an end narrative.

Aristotle claims that shorelines should be completely about themes and that characters and narratives are not important.

Our groups narrative theory links in closest with Todorov and how its not all about the characters but focuses more on equilibriums and disequilibrium with the story having a beginning middle and end. Our plan for our opening scene is a sleepover with 4 friends when they decide to do an Ouija board but it turns wrong and things start to happen. The lights start to flicker on and off and people start to hear things. The opening scene will end there but we have planned the future of the film in that one of the friends continues to become haunted and in the ends commits suicide due to them not being able to take anymore.

Our group will be using various techniques including cinematography, sounds, mise-en-scene and edits to create a detailed opening scene. The scene is meant to scare the audience and spook them out and intrigue them to want to watch more to find out what will happen to the 4 teenagers. 

group narrative

Our groups ideas.



Brittanys Idea 

A group of girls are all together in a house having a night in watching tele when one of the girls suggest a ouija board. They set it up and look on the internet how to set it up, it tells them that they must pray before playing the game however they all ignore this and continue to start the game. Once they begin to play the game it starts to move slowely and spells out names that are familiar to one of the girls. They immediatly move the glass to ' goodbye ' but the glass moves itself to 'no'. They begin to panic and all take their fingers of  the glass except for one, This is bad and brakes the protective chain around them. They all begin to notice strange things happen like banging doors and and lights flicker on and off and eventually all the electricity turns of in the house. They have been locked in the house and the keys have been moved from the side and they find them selves trapped in the house with whatever it is that is doing these things. Then they are all sitting still and listening and then shadows move across the room infront of them.
    The advantages of this idea is that the setting is easy to use and there is nothing that is particually hard to create the strange activity in the house. However the disadvantages of this are that .....

Taylers Idea

A man has been kidnapped and taken and put in a room alone. If he is not saved or found his way pur of the room within the 6 hours he is given by his kidnapper then a new form of spider will be released upon him where it will eat and kill him. The charachter in the room will be a man who has been part of a gang and robbed and killed inocent people and this is now his karma. The enigma behind the man captured, Carter ( the kidnapper ) is one of the people that was a victin to the gang but survived the incedent and is now getting his own back on him.
    The dissadvantages of this idea are that taylers idea is that it would be hard to find a life size spider that is capable of killing and eating someone alive. However the advantages of this are that even though it is very hard to create, if it was possible it would be a very good thriller as its quite an original idea and can keep the audience on edge.

Wills Idea

There is a group of friends of 4 people which consists of 2 girls and 2 boys. After a while one of the girls brittany begins to fall in love with one of the boys Tayler. Once Brittany begins to realise that Tayler doesnt feel the same for her it angers her and makes her upset. It turns Brittany insane trying to find out how she can win tayler. When she realises there is no way for her to get him her twisted thoughts turn to how she can hurt him how he has hurt her. She decides to make a voodoo doll of tayler and that way she knows whenever he hurts her she can hurt him just as bad. Brittany hurts Tayler and breaks his arms and legs and brittany recives great joy from hurting the person she loves. her ideas start to evolve and she starts to plan bigger and worse things for tayler.

   The disadvantages of this is that we cant break Taylers arms and legs, but the advantages of this is that it would be scary to see how her thoughts are evolving and becoming more sick and twisted as the film goes on.

My Idea

I think that our thriller film should be about a demon which has possesed a house and plays with the lives of the 4 people living in it. The House is home to a family of 4 young people all of similar ages, however the demon has decided to particually target one of the youngest girls living there as she comes across as the most vulnerable. When her family members start to notice her acting in strange ways and notice odd things happening in the house hold, they decide to set up a ouija board. When they do it without the youngest girl nothing happens but there are loud noises coming from upstairs in the house and the wind picks up and blows through the house and there are objects flying around the room. When the family end the game and get the youngest girl to join in, the glass starts moving spelling out kates name and names that are familliar to her and the strange goings on in the house begin to fall into place. They realise that kate is possesed by the demon and it wants a clean pure soal to take over and make it its own. The family try to do everything in their power to help their sister and take her for exorcisms but nothing seems to be clearing the demon from inside her body, are they too late ?

















 

individual narative

My thriller film idea.

 

 

 

I think that our thriller film should be about a demon which has possesed a house and plays with the lives of the 4 people living in it. The House is home to a family of 4 young people all of similar ages, however the demon has decided to particually target one of the youngest girls living there as she comes across as the most vulnerable. When her family members start to notice her acting in strange ways and notice odd things happening in the house hold, they decide to set up a ouija board. When they do it without the youngest girl nothing happens but there are loud noises coming from upstairs in the house and the wind picks up and blows through the house and there are objects flying around the room. When the family end the game and get the youngest girl to join in, the glass starts moving spelling out kates name and names that are familliar to her and the strange goings on in the house begin to fall into place. They realise that kate is possesed by the demon and it wants a clean pure soal to take over and make it its own. The family try to do everything in their power to help their sister and take her for exorcisms but nothing seems to be clearing the demon from inside her body, are they too late ?

 

 

 The film should be shot in a nice ordinary house which will decieve the audience into beliving that the house is safe and nothing is going to happen. The charachters have to be shown as much stronger than the weakest girl as it has to clearly portray why the demon has chosen to posses the youngest one. I got my idea from the paranormal activity films as i feel that these films are filmed in a realistic way and are in my opinion the easist to re create.


My idea is conventional to a thriller film as it will keep the audience on the edge of their seats at all tmes as they will be waiting to see what happens to the charachters once the ouija board has gone wrong. The fact that me and Brit cant see the demon but the audience can creates a sense of panic and wngages the audience as they may feel the sudden urge to help us and tell us to get out of the room as they are aware of the danger we are in, meanwhile we are oblivius as to what is happening around us.

 

 

Age Certificate

Age Certificates

Age certificates are important so they can set a guideline for the ages appropriate to watch it so it does not manipulate a child's mind. There are many different aspects which need to be taken into account when making a film in a particular classification. Some of these points are, discrimination, drugs, horror, imitable behaviour language, nudity, sex, violence and video games.

  

The lowest certificate there is is a 'U'. This film should be sutible for very young children of the ages 4 and over. The film should include none of the different aspects above other than if for example discrination was to be used, it would only be acceptable if it was cleary being shown as wrong. It should be sutible for a small child to be able to view the film alone without any parental supervision. The films should be set within a positive moral and must not manipulate a childs mind, however it is impossible to be able to know what could either upset or anger an individual child.


The next certificate is a 'PG' this means that the film may be sutible for the child to watch alone over the age of 8 however a parent may want to look at the contents of the film beforehand to decide weather they feel comfortable with their child viewing it. There can be only very mild bad language, drugs or drug abuse can only be used if portraying an anti- drug message. moderate violence may be used however only acceptable if it used for an educational reason for example history or may be used for comedy refrences.

The next two are '12' and '12a'. They both use the same catergoric critera however the only difference is a child below the age of 12 can view a '12a' film as long as an adult is accompanying them and has said they feel that the contents of the film is sutible for a younger child, this catergory only exists in the cinema. A '12' film means that no one below the age of 12 can view the film with or without the permission of an adult or parent, as the contents of the film is seen as unsuitable for any one below the age of 12.

The next certificate is a '15'. This certificate means that in a cinema no one below the age of 15 can view the film or any one below 15 will be able to buy or rent a film with this certificate. The different aspects become much more flexible and the contents of the film will become more graphic. Drugs are allowed to be shown taken however the film must not promote them or encourage them in any way. It must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour. Strong threat and mennace is allowed however it may not be sexualised. Any dangerous behaviour is allowed but must not focus on any parts which may be copied for example hanging, suicide or self harming. Any weapons that are easily accesable must not be promoted or focused on.  There may be frequent use of strong lanuage however if it is constantly repeated or if the language is portraying aggresivness then it is likely to be seen as unacceptable. There may be sexual scenes as long as they dont go into to much detail.

The final certificates are '18' and 'R18' there is very little difference between the two. Adult should be able to choose their own entertainment and there is not much that is unnaceptable however there may be some exceptions which could be where the material is in breach of the criminal law or has been created through the commision of a criminal offence. Where the film can bring a risk of harm to an indiviual or society. Where there are more explicit images which cannot be justified by the context.
'R18' should only be shown in specially lisenced cinemas or supplyed only in lisenced sex shops to adults over the age of 18 only.

Every film is specifically chosen age certificates due to the contents of the film. For example the 'Saw' films are rated at an 18, this is because the contents contains violence and gory scenes and is very disturbing for the audience. Whereas the 'Paranormal activity films' are rated at a 15 because they are still not sutible for

What is a thriller film?

What is a thriller film?

Codes and conventions.
Enigma - A mystery is always set in a thriller
Representation of characters - victims are represented as being weak
Violence - when people are being killed
Dramatic irony- audience knows the victim is going to get attached the sound goes up
lighting- low key lighting creates shadows, high key lighting creates a happy scene
Editing - to build suspense and tension
Iconography- props, weapons, chains, ropes
Non - diegetic sounds - Creates tension, hear sound when you cant hear where its coming from
mirrors- To show persons reflections


there are many different conventions which all together create the whole idea of a thriller film. The different conventions are all essential for the making of a thriller film. Normally in thriller films there is dark lighting and settings which are not clear to us which creates a sense of suspension throughout the film. There is always a narrative and story line which makes it easy to follow whats happening. There is nearly always an aspect of violence as this is one of the main conventions in a thriller film. Jumpy sounds are used and load and bold music to make the audience scared and on edge. The clothes in thriller films are important as it can diffrerentiate between the victim and the killer, generally the victim would be in white which shows innocence and the killers identity is usually hidden.

  An example of one of the conventions is shown in the opening scene to the first saw film, this particular convention was low key lighting. The first scene shows the man waking up in a dark room and he is unable to identify his whereabouts. This gives the audience a feeling of uncertainty and builds a tension. This convention is important in a thriller film becasue it can create an eery setting.

Another convention that is shown in the saw opening was violence. There is a man laying dead in the middle of the floor and this creates an enigma as nobody in the room knows why he is there. this is important for thriller films to include violence so early on in the film because it can create the whole atmosphere as to what the film will be about and so the audience will know that it will include more violence.

The final convention that i analysed was Iconograhy. There are many props used in the opening scene, There is a gun in the middle of the floor and both of the charachters are chained up to objects in the room which they wake up in. Neither of the men know why they are there or why there are weapons in the blood stained room. This creates an atmosphere of tension as the charachters have no idea why they are there and niether do the audience. This is important because the props can say alot about the genre of the film, and what is going to happen next.


Our opening scene of our thriller






                  

Editing

Analysis of  The Strangers scene.

The editing of a film is very important. There are so many edits in every single film that you wont even realise that you are watching them. The edits in a film make it interesting and will focus the audiences attention on the most important subject in the scene. The editing of a film can show the difference between an action shot when there is a lot going on and the shots are very fast to relaxed scene when the editing is very slow.

In The Strangers scene that i was analysing the first thing i noticed was the slow editing as the woman was walking toward the door. The creates an uneasy atmosphere with suspence and tension which is quickly bulding as she moves close to the door. The slow editing in the scene makes the audience aware that there may be something not very nice waiting for her on the other side of the door and the anticipation is building to see wheather or not she is going to open the door. Slow editing is used a lot in thrillers as this is mainly the best way to create a scene that is supposed to scare the audience as the slower the editing is the more the audience are left waiting to see what is going to happen next.

The next shot i picked up on was a reaction shot. This was when the women had told the person to leave her front door and after she heard no noise her first reaction was to go and check outside the window to make sure that the person had left. This is a good shot to have used because the audience are waiting to see if something is going to be behind the curtain as she lifts it to look out. A reaction shot is used a lot in thrillers because they are a good way of interacting with the audience by showing exactly how the subject is feeling or what they are going to do next to what happened in the scene.

Another edit that i saw was the jump cut. The girl drops the alarm and then the shot jumps to the door. Alarms mean panic so even having the alarm in her hands the audience are already thinking that something is bad is about to happen. As the shot changes to there door gives the audience the impression that whatever was behind the door is back and makes the audience nervous as to what is going to happen next. Jump shots are used in thrillers because they are very quick and it makes it very dramatic when there is a lot going on in the scene.

I have realised that editing is very important in thrillers because it can make the difference between creating an intersting and dramatic scene or a boring and dull scene.

Mise-en-scene

Prom night scene

mise-en-scene is a french term for everything in the scene. There are 5 main elements of mise-en-scene. they are important for thriller films because it helps the audience to understand the narritives.

For prom night the setting is in a hotel which is not a typical setting for a thriller film because generally a hotel would mean that people were having a good tike and enjoy them selves which contradicts what is about to happen. this may fool the audience into believing that nothing bad is going to happen which then leaves the audience unprepared for the following events.


the costumes hair and make up of the characters are very appropriate to the scene which is happening. The identification of the killer is hidden throughout the first part of the scene and dressed in black which is different to everyone else in the scene as everyone else is in prom outfits and are seen to be having a good time. the identification of the killer is hidden because it creates an atmosphere of suspense for the audience.

the facial expressions of the killer serious and concentrated because he has told himself that he has to kill the girl. the facial expressions of the girl are clearly panicked and upset which differentiates the girl who is in danger to the killer. the fact that his facial expressions are so clear and stern makes the audience uneasy.

The colour which is used throughout the scene is it is dark outside and which that alone creates an eery atmosphere. the killers face is mostly covered by flashing lights. the flashing lights are blue which automatically triggers painc through the audience as flashing blue lights are gereally associtated with police and fire brigade.