Outfits

This was the look that we were going for. We chose this because it fits our mise-en- scene and we feel that 1960's gangster films make great thrillers.

Location Of Filming

 

 

 

 

 

 

These toilets were where we were going to film our media piece however we did not realise that these would be closed. Leading to us having to move locations, which was not really what we want as we had planned for that area. However we had to change no matter what but what we did find with our back up location it almost worked better than our original idea. As we felt that it built tension so much better, as it gave us that thriller mysterious location feel.

 

The images above is where we will film the second part of our movie this is where you will see one of the characters bound to a chair and getting beaten up.

 

This image above is where we had to move for filming as our first area was closed however it was still gave a good effect and we believe it could be better than our first idea


 

No Country for old Men Analysis

With this first shot or set of shots, there is an extreme long shot used this is also known as a establishing shot. This is to show how barren the land scape is and that as the title says it’s no place for the weak. When filming this though it has been cleverly done as it looks like a set of shots put together are like photographs, which not only adds to the tension but makes the audience ask questions about what’s going on why are they here? Who is here? Etc.

The next shot I decided to evaluate was the one where we have the officer is on the phone to his superior. The have used lighting very well in this shot with having the good guy who’s face is lit up well and in the background we have the shifty shady figure in the background. This is a great tension builder as the edit the scene well. As the shady figure waits until the good guy has finished his call so the superior does not assume there is anything wrong down at the office. Also this could symbolise his last moment last call before he dies never to be heard of again when that phone goes down.

The next scene I shall evaluate is the one where we have the struggle on the floor this is edited well as we do not see the true violence of the scene as you only get the shot of the feet. However we do see that there are scrape marks on the on the floor making the audience feel how will the murder get rid of it what will he do. The sound that is used in this shot is high pitch violins which emphasize the struggle and help build the tension. Again making the audience ask questions will he escape? Who will win the fight? Also which us finding out that the shift character has killed one person and about to kill another, it emphasizes his power that he has.  

Conventions Of a Thriller Opening

Another thing that goes without saying is the titles I have found that in most of these openings you will not just have computer edited titles which don't really build tension and aren't very effective at all. So normally what they do is put the titles in on the back of wall in spray paint or blood etc. It really could be any way as long as it is effective.

The story in the thriller opening is probably one of the most important parts of a thriller and it usually grabs most the attention. It is important that the director meets the needs of the audience which are Excitement, suspense and action. At the same time the director should not reveal too much and they must make sure that the audience is urging for more after the opening scene. In the build up to the thriller opening I have been researching directors like Michael Mann who is an expert in applying these techniques.

Holding information back is another key I feel is done, making the audience ask questions. Why is she dead? Is she dead? however you do have to be careful when doing this because sometimes you can hold to much back which can put some viewers off who want to watch a film just for escapism. And don't really want to think too much, resulting in them turning the film off.

Music is very important and good thriller music can have just as much effect as the story. The music must be appealing and tense. It must build up a tense feeling amongst the audience. This is exactly what we are aiming for.

Camera angles and shots are very important good use of camera shots always has its impact on a film. We will use the over the shoulder shot, the reason we have chosen this is because we feel that it builds suspense and it brings the feeling that something is watching.

 

Prelim Evaluation

Evaluation of Prelim video

Strengths:

For the strengths of our prelim I feel that there where many one of them being, shot composition and editing even though it was our first time with using I-movie and we did not have any hiccups like breaking the one hundred and eighty rule, and also we tried our hardest and succeeded with getting all our feet in the correct place leading to us having a well made piece of media.

Weaknesses and improvements:

Although I feel that our whole work as a group was a success a couple others have noticed some problems one of those being the gunshots. The reason this is a weakness and needs improving is because the sound that we were able to get hold of was not really what we were looking for, leading us to edit it severally just to make it fit and even then it was not the best.

One other fault that I did find was that when I was walking into the room we then had a cut shot to my face, from there it jumped to me shooting the gun with that you do see an irregular jump from place to place that doesn’t really work. To improve this we would have to re film that section as we didn’t have the shots at the time to make it fit.

What I have learnt:

Having never used I-movie that would be the first thing to state that I have learnt how to use with that now I feel very confidant with the software for further use in media. Also the Other thing that I did learn was that I did not know how time consuming I-movie would be. The reason that I am saying this is because our teacher gave us two lessons the equivalent of two hours worth for editing. However with our group feeling that we had to do everything perfect we had to spend extra time on our movie leading to us only being able to find two faults with the finished product. Which for our first time that really isn’t bad.

Analysis of 7

As we can see from this mid shot we see that there is the cocky young detective who believes he knows everything, how he is still very inexperienced even though he has worked in another city before. But this city is like no other city. This is shown from the way that his mise-en-scene  is used they have not got him dressed smartly the shot of him with his head forward and hips leaning back is like a kid who has just found out he is right at something. As we see this shot is lighter than most of the others I believe that they have done this to represent his personality, as they show the other detective as a shifty character and unpredictable.

I like how they have done this shot, mise-en-scene shows us that these are the tools of the trade, this is what all officers should carry. The reason I say this is because the shifty character, who is meant to be the wise old cop carries these everywhere he goes. The lighting in this shot is better I believe that they have done this because they want to make it clear that these tools are his life and they may come into play later on in the film. Also this shot shows that he is good at his job as he is very organised and regimental.

In this shot we see a close up on the messy floor. Mise-en-scene and the lighting have been used very well due the director wanting to hold a lot back and keep the audience wondering what is happening and what will happen. This is done by the props that have been used which torch lights are showing us that the setting is a disgusting which almost implies that they may find something that is either disgusting or just something you just don’t want to find.

 

Through my own research i have found that these are some of the best places to film a Thriller

Words to Do with Thrillers

Settings for a Thriller

With a large amount of thrillers you will find that there is normally a character who has a evil idea, or who has some sort of psychological problem. With them the mise-en-scene is normally that they are wearing clothing either old or tattered and they have some kind of weapon to do damage, destruction and or murder.

For a thriller i have found that you can have them set anywhere as long as you are able to make tension.

Questionnaire

Audience questionnaire

Please tick the correct box where acquired.

1. What is your gender?            

2. How old are you?

3. Do you enjoy thriller movies?

4. What of these is your preferred movie genre

5. What is your preferred music type?

6. How often do you watch movies?

7. What is your favourite film sub-genre out of the following?

8. What is your favourite thriller film and why?

9. Do you think romance is suitable in a thriller?

10. What is it that you think is essential to get right to make a good thriller?

       E.g. soundtrack, setting etc.

Prelim video

Thriller conventions

Thriller conventions

Camera work

Typical shots

Establishing shot-location

Mid shots-characteristics

Close ups-disorientation

Composition/framing

Key props

Creates suspense

Use of camera movement/angles

High/low angle shots to show power/status

Use of perspective

1^st person=empathy

Editing

Shows complex narrative/tension as story converges

Fast or slow cuts to make it fit in with the mood (fast cuts for action)

Thriller opening conventions

Drama tension

Use of music

Titles-name of film, actors, directors, company identity

Confusing- questions want to be answered

One significant event

Sounds

Use ambient sounds-music/noises fade in/out = atmosphere

Voice over to create back story

Avoid dialogue

Mis-en-scene

Setting-realistic/isolated

Costume-realism

Actors-males (protagonist, antagonists)

Women usually the victim

Weapons-realism

Lighting-shadows etc.

Narrative

Disorientating start halfway through an event-audience left with questions

Chronological?

Introduce main characters/plot

Extension of conventions of a Thriller

1. Plot: Generally, thrillers show justice and injustice (or good and evil) fighting against each other, with an overall feel of suspense. Most often, the identity of the antagonist is known and the protagonist must intervene with their plans; a thriller movie usually has a growing sense of threat and/or danger and there is a clear sense of pursuit, although they sometimes begin with a sense of equilibrium and show the overall degeneration of events.

          Narrative: (points of view; events) The story of a typical thriller film will usually be shown from the protagonist’s point of view, following events that the heroes must overcome. This point of view allows the audience to become more involved in the events themselves and therefore closer to the characters, as they see how the characters interact with each other in different situations.

          However, other points of view are sometimes included in the telling of the plot: often they will be short clips from the villain’s point of view, allowing the audience to see how the antagonist acts while by themselves, or how they used to act i.e. in a flashback, which creates empathy for the villain and possibly allows the audience to understand why they have become the evil party. Depending on the character that plays the villain or how much is revealed to the audience, a sense of guilt can also be created. Most typically, events covered by the film are important to the film’s progression and lead directly on from a previous scene.

          There are usually lots of action scenes between characters, which keep the audience guessing what will happen next and how the characters will interact with each other. If the characters actions are erratic and keep changing then the film’s suspense grows, as we do not know what will happen next. During scenes where the characters are simply talking with each other, the audience generally understands what is happening but never gets the full explanation of the plot or events taken place, which allows the film to retain its mystery and suspense until later. Usually the motive of the villain and their relation to the hero will be revealed at the end or near the end of the film, and the audience is then able to understand why the characters have acted the way they have. If the motive is left unrevealed, the film will end of a note of suspense and confusion, allowing the audience to continue to imagine what would happen after the film has finished.

Characters: (dress; typical roles) The two main characters (antagonist and protagonist) in a thriller are set apart from each other in the way the audience views them. The heroes in thrillers are often men that are accustomed to danger in their jobs or lifestyles (i.e. policemen, spies, etc) or are ordinary citizens that have been pulled into danger by accident. The male hero usually has an aim to defeat the evil of the situation and will persevere even if nothing is going according to plan.

          The villains in thrillers are also typically men, usually tall and/ or well built, and with a shady sense around them that gives the impression that they shouldn’t be trusted. This character may have some physical deformity, or a traumatic experience that has changed their outlook on life or humanity. Usually they will work alone. 

Prelim Shot List

Scene #	Shot	Location	Shot Description	Framing	Action	Dialogue	Actors	Props
#1	A	F block tunnel	Long shot, straight on of Vince coming through fire doors with Ryan behind him	Vince in middle of shot showing both doors	Vince walking through doors	None	Vince, Ryan	None
#1	B	F block tunnel	Looking up at him from behind, low angle shot	Vince taking up about 1/3 of the shot	Vince walking down corridor	None	Vince	None
#1	C	F block tunnel	Mid-shot of Vince from right side at body level	Body and upwards, missing out legs	Vince walking down corridor	None	Vince	None
#1	D	F block tunnel	Security camera view from top corner of corridor	Showing whole section of corridor	Vince walking down corridor	None	Vince, Ryan	None
#1	E	F block tunnel	Long shot down corridor of Vince approaching C112 door	Whole of C block upper corridor show C110 and toilet doors	Vince walking down corridor	None	Vince	None
#1	F	F block tunnel	Close up of Vince grabbing the door handle	Door handle and hand taking up 90% of the shot space	Vince opening door of C112	None	Vince	None
#1	G	C112	Close up of other side of the door handle being pushed down	Full shot of the door handle, no background	Vince opening door of C112	None		None
#1	H	C112	Close up of walking legs	Legs, mainly lower taking up most of shot, background of floor	Vince walking through C112 to seat	None	Vince	None
#1	I	C112	High angle shot looking down upon scene	Showing whole room, including door	Vince walking through C112 to seat	None	Vince, Callum	None
#1	J	C112	Low angle shot of Vince sitting down	Chair taking up majority of shot and just lower body and legs of Vince	Vince beginning to sit down on seat	None	Vince	None
#1	K	C112	Over the shoulder shot to see Vince’s expression	1/3 of Cullum’s head and the rest of Vince	Vince looking surprised	You come to me on the day of your daughter’s wedding	Vince, Callum	None
#1	L	C112	Over the shoulder shot of Vince	1/3 of Vince’s head and the rest of Callum	Seeing Callum talking to Vince	Asking for help	Vince, Callum	None
#1	M	C112	Over the shoulder shot to see Vince speaking	1/3 of Cullum’s head and the rest of Vince	Vince speaking to Callum	Meet my little friend	Vince, Callum	None
#1	N	C112	Mid shot of door flying open, not being able to see character	Door in middle of frame, showing door frame and walls	Door opening	None		None
#1	O	C112	Close ups and extreme close ups of expressions of all characters faces	Full shots of faces and no background or any other objects	Showing surprised expressions on character’s faces	None	Vince, Callum, Ryan	Gun
#1	P	C112	Mid shot of whole scene seeing shooting panning right	Scene taking up approx. 1/3 of shot with surroundings taking the rest	Callum walking away unharmed	None	Vince, Callum, Ryan	Gun
#1	Q	C112 moving to F block tunnel	Side shot of victim on floor, moving backwards and zooming out	Victim originally taking up 1/3 of shot but being reduced further as shot zooms out	Victims laying on floor	None	Vince, Callum, Ryan	None