Brief - Lighting, Editing and Thrillers

Lighting –
Lighting is an important element of any film scene, and this was emphasised to us when the Year 13’s offered their advice. Taking into account the cameras that are available to us, we knew that avoiding dark rooms or filming at night would provide poor quality on the film, and so decided that filming would take place during the day. After location hunting and finding a suitable location, we decided to use a room with a skylight that provides excellent natural light, solving the problem of poor natural light. Much of our opening is also going to be a flashback, and we decided that the colours would be black and white. Filming would take place during the day though, thus not affecting again the issue of bad lighting.

Editing –
As our opening will keep reverting to flashback scenes, editing would feature prominently in our opening. We decided to use a white fade, taking the advice of our teachers not to use a black fade or dissolve at these moments. We also decided to include many elements of editing such as match cuts, shot reverse shot and if necessary sticking to the 180 degree rule. In terms of the titles for the film, we decided to have these at the end of the opening, as it will end on a cliff-hanger.

What makes it a Thriller? –
We drew a lot of inspiration for our Thriller from the films Se7en and The Strangers. In terms of the genre of these films, they are sub genres, including aspects of the thriller genre, and the detective/murder genre. The inclusion of a murder enquiry and a murderer in each film categorises the films as Thrillers as the concept of murder, death and violence are thrilling for audiences. The iconography of our particular film, such as the abandoned house setting, and props such as knives, blood and rope again enforces the idea of murder/violence and the thriller genre. We also included a hint at a physiological antagonist, with his costume, and the inclusion of make up and petrol hint at a mentally unstable antagonist, again which suits the thriller genre.

Laurence Ruthven

Character Influence – Meg Altman

Meg Altman played by Jodie Foster is the main female protagonist of the 2002 thriller film Panic Room, directed by David Fincher. In it, Meg must battle to try and save her daughters life after she is trapped in a panic room during a robbery of her house.
During this particular film, Jodie Foster’s character has to go through an emotional and physical battle as she fights to ensure her daughter does not die from her medical condition. This particular element of the film forms a large part of Megs struggle, as she is throughout trying to convince her armed robbers to save her daughters life.
This film also places Meg at the mercy of the robbers, seemingly unable to attempt anything successfully that will overcome the antagonists of the film, and this is something we feel our female protagonist will also face during our film.
We felt that the costume worn by Foster in this film is successful as it has simple connations of fear and anxiety, and is in keeping with the films simple premise and setting. We decided that costume for our female protagonsit would play an important part in the overall storyline of the film.

Jodie Foster in fact has played the lead role in many thriller films, such as The Silence of the Lambs and Flightplan. Due to this, we felt it would be wise to look at these films, and drew many ideas from the costumes, characters and iconography that Foster presents in her films. We also drew encouragement in using a female protagonist because of the success that Foster brought to her characters in her thriller films.

Laurence Ruthven

Focus Group

Conventions/Expectations of a thriller

Questionaire to focus group - We asked the following questions to a focus group made up of our agreed target audience, which is 15-19 year olds. The focus group was made of a 50/50 split to students who took media and those who didnt, allowing a range of answers from people with experience of filming a thrillers and those who simply watch them as audiences.

1. What is your favourite thriller film?

2. How do you feel towards a male protagonist?

3. How do you feel towards a female protagonist?

4. What kind of atmosphere do you feel low key lighting sets?

5. Do you feel that on screen violence is necessary for a good thriller?

6. Do you feel that flash backs should be in black and white?

7. Should music be used in a thriller, if so what type?

8. Is there a certain type of setting that should be used for a thriller, if so what type?




One of the intresting points to come from the feedback was the idea of having a female as the central protagonist. Thr group felt that mainly a female should be used as a victim and not someone who is acting as the heroine. They also agreed that on screen vviolence was not necessary to make a good thriller, an idea that we had agreed with beforehand as a group. The idea of flashbacks was met with a mixed reception as some said that it would become confusing for the audience, while others saying that they are effective in mapping out the narrative of the film. Our focus group agreed that the setting of an abandoned house was perfect iconography for a thriller, as well as an overgrown garden.

Jade Smith, Elliott Joyner, Matt Simmons, Laurence Ruthven

Initial Ideas

Our initial ideas revolved around a hostage situation whereby a hostage is being held and questioned. In it the hostage has flashbacks involving an object she has hidden and is being quizzed about. We decided that we would use a setting of an empty room, possibly in an abandoned house, with the flashbacks taking place in a forest. After watching the opening sequence of The Strangers we also had the idea of using a flashback to shots of a girl being tortured and the house being discovered and explored in the modern day. We also had the idea of detectives inspecting the house and picking up evidence with flashbacks to the torture/murder.

We also had several initial ideas of shots/scenes –
- Shot of car pulling up
- Close ups of face
- Pan of people walking across towards house
- Wide shot of person in woods
- Black and White shots in Flashback
- Point of view shot from outside the house
- Telephone conversation over film
- Iconography including knife, rope, chair, etc

We wanted to include a flashback in the opening that would be in black and white, as this showed that audience the events were taking place in the past. This was partly inspired by Cape Fear opening and the opening to Casino Royale.
We also had the idea of using contrapuntal music during the flashback, with songs such as ‘wouldn’t It be nice’ playing while the negative images were being shown on screen. We also discussed the possibility of using a voiceover as a way of introducing events and summarising the opening.

Laurence Ruthven

Deciding the rating for our thriller

We as group decided after looking at the details of the U.K rating system that our thriller would come under the '15' bracket.
We though this was best mostly due to the constraints put on the '12a' horror. Our thriller would have some more disturbing and sadistic scenes involving the antagonist than what is deemed acceptable under the '12a' bracket of rating. Also the '12a' bracket does not allow any great detail on the level of injury or a great deal of blood in terms of this injury. The '15' bracket allows more freedom in these fields. As a group we did not see our piece as being extreme in any way to be deemed as in the '18 bracket as these thrillers would have extended sequances of disturbing horror and gore filled and exageratted violence.

Details of the film rating system

As mentioned in an earlier post thrillers are typically rated between 12a and 18. I will describe the features of these ratings and any in between.


12a. Discrimination- Langauge or actions that appear discriminatory can not be endorsed by the peice of work, agressive discriminatory langauge in unlikely to be condoned by characters so to have such behaviour the acts must be clearly condemmed.

Drugs- Any use or sale of drugs cannot be glamourised or supported by the bulk of characters.

Horror- A moderate ammount of physical or psychological threat is allowed, this is provided that disturbing sequances are not frequant or lengthy

Langauge- Moderate langauge is permitted, any strong langauge (e.g f**k) must not be regular

Nudity- Nudity is allowed but in a sexual context must be discreet and must be brief

Sex-Sexual activity may be briefly and discreetly portrayed.Sex references should not go beyond what is suitable for young teenagers. Frequent crude references are unlikely
to be acceptable.

Theme-Mature themes are acceptable, but their treatment must be suitable for young teenagers.

Violence- Moderate violence is allowed but should not dwell on detail. There should be no emphasis on injuries or blood, but occasional gory moments may be permitted if
justified by the context. Sexual violence may only be implied or briefly and
discreetly indicated, and must have a strong contextual

15.

Discrimination- The work as a whole must not endorse discriminatory language or behaviour.

Drugs-Drug taking may be shown but the film as a whole must not promote or encourage drug misuse. The misuse of easily accessible and highly dangerous substances (for example,
aerosols or solvents) is unlikely to be acceptable.

Horror-Strong threat and menace are permitted unless sadistic or sexualised.

Imitable behaviour- Dangerous behaviour (for example, hanging, suicide and self-harming) should not dwell on detail which could be copied. Easily accessible weapons should not be glamorised.

Language- There may be frequent use of strong language (for example, ‘f**k’). The strongest terms (for example, ‘c**t’) may be acceptable if justified by the context. Aggressive or repeated
use of the strongest language is unlikely to be acceptable.

Nudity-Nudity may be allowed in a sexual context but withoutstrong detail. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

Sex-Sexual activity may be portrayed without strong detail. There may be strong verbal references to sexual behaviour, but the strongest references are unlikely to be acceptable
unless justified by context. Works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal or stimulation are unlikely to be acceptable.

Theme- No theme is prohibited, provided the treatment is appropriate for 15 year olds.

Violence-Violence may be strong but should not dwell on the infliction of pain or injury. The strongest gory images are unlikely to be acceptable. Strong sadistic or sexualised violence is also
unlikely to be acceptable. There may be detailed verbal references to sexual violence but any portrayal of sexual violence must be discreet and have a strong contextual justification.

18

In line with the consistent findings of the BBFC’s publicconsultations and The Human Rights Act 1998, at ‘18’ the BBFC’s guideline concerns will not normally overridethe principle that adults should be free to choose their own entertainment. Exceptions are most likely in the
following areas:

• where the material is in breach of the criminal law,or has been created through the commission of a criminal offence
• where material or treatment appears to the BBFC to risk harm to individuals or, through their behaviour, to society – for example, any detailed portrayal of violent or dangerous acts, or of illegal drug use, which may cause harm to public health or morals.This may include portrayals of sexual or sexualised violence which might, for example, eroticise or
endorse sexual assault
• where there are more explicit images of sexual activity which cannot be justified by context. Such images may be appropriate in ‘R18’ works, and in ‘sex works’ (see below) would normally be confined to that category. In the case of video works (including video games),which may be more accessible to younger viewers, intervention may be more frequent than for cinema films.

Sex education at ‘18’
Where sex material genuinely seeks to inform and educate in matters such as human sexuality, safer sex and health, explicit images of sexual activity may
be permitted.

Sex works at ‘18’
Sex works are works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal or stimulation. Sex works containing only material which may be simulated are generally passed ‘18’. Sex works containing clear images of real sex, strong fetish material, sexually explicit animated images, or other
very strong sexual images will be confined to the ‘R18’category. Material which is unacceptable in a sex workat ‘R18’ is also unacceptable in a sex work at ‘18’.

Information is from http://www.bbfc.co.uk/ Matt Simmons

U.K Film Ratings system

Universal All ages admitted, there is nothing unsuitable for children.


Parental Guidance General viewing, but certain scenes may be unsuitable for children under 8.

12A May be unsuitable for under 12s. Those aged under 12 are only admitted if accompanied by an adult at all times during the performance (cinema only).

12 Suitable only for those aged 12 and over.
No-one younger than 12 can rent or buy a 12 rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game.

15 Suitable only for those aged 15 and over.
Nobody younger than 15 can see a 15 film in a cinema. No-one younger than 15 can rent or buy a 15 rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game.

18
Suitable only for adults.
Nobody younger than 18 may see an 18 film in a cinema.
No-one younger than 18 can rent or buy an 18 rated VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD or game.

Restricted 18
For adults only.
May only be shown at licensed cinemas or sold at sex shops, and only to people aged 18 or over.

Certificate Name Definition




U.K Film Ratings system
We have researched ratings of films and certificates to help us make a decision about the certificate we would like to make our own thriller. Most thrillers fall into the ‘15’ or ‘18’ categories as they contain adult themes like violence and sex amongst other things in appropriate for children. This must be kept in mind when classifying our own thriller.

Information from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Board_of_Film_Classification

Matt Simmons

Story Boards of Existing Thrillers

The Strangers
The Strangers (2008) Directed by Bryan Bertino has a sub genre of horror-thriller. I storyboarded the opening 8 shots which lasted 91 seconds in order to gain a better understanding of the shots, sound and action used in thriller films before making our own.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnLRdAuzeP0




Casino Royale
Casino Royale (2006) Directed by Martin Campbell





Jade Smith and Laurence Ruthven

Subgenres/Hybrids- Which of these does our thriller fall under?

To define the smaller details of films we use these terms, they differentiate different conventions and/or genres from each other.

Subgenre: A subgenre is when one main genre e.g thriller is paired with a different specific convention like psychological. These paired together will have a different effect to a pure thriller or thriller with another convention attached.

Hybrids: A hybrid is a combination of two or different genres e.g a horror-thriller. Or in the case of Shaun of the dead a romantic zombie comedy (rom, zom, com) this is a hybrid with other conventions that are not a genre on their own.

Our thriller falls under the hybrid band of these. It is a horror-thriller. We have expected conventions of both of these genres. From the thriller side we use iconography like knives and the use of an isolated and neglected house. From the world of horror we have taken the idea of a normal man turning into a madman and the use of a psychotic torture scene.

Matt Simmons

Year 13 Thrillers

During lesson time we watched thrillers which had been made by previous years that had been set the same task, we then gave each thriller an estimation of what mark we thought would have been awarded. Our group found this to be a particularly helpful activity as we were able to see what uses of sound, cinematography, mise en scene and editing were effective or not. It was also very interesting to see what ideas and concepts people had previously come up with while we were in the process of looking for ideas and inspiration.
Things that we thought were effective:
In terms of sound
-Soundtrack which varied in pitch and volume in order to play on the audience's emotions by creating tension or excitment
-Stings as they drew attention to important action and startled audience
-Diegetic and plenastic sound such as footsteps or metal (knife, sword etc)
-Minimal dialogue as it tended to add too much reality or storyline, rather than placing focus on the action
In terms of editing
-Parallel editing successfully created inigmas through portraying two different events which are linked to one another
-The 180 degree rule as it is the opening of the thriller, where characters are being established, and therefore should not be confused
-Cuts and match cuts maintained continuity between shots
-Rapid editing played on the audience's emotions by exciting and thrilling them
-Fading between shots was visually effective
In terms of cinematography
-Close ups and extreme close ups created suspense, particularly with facial expressions
-Wide shots were very effective if the setting was, also for establishing shots
-Hand held movement took away smoothness and added excitement/suspense and involved the audience with the action
-High and low angle shots were successful in establishing which characters had power or were in a vulnerable position because it is the opening and the audience do not know the characters yet
-Zooming was sometimes ineffective and looked slightly unproffessional
In terms of mise en scene
-The iconography of weapons such as guns and knives
-Masks were visually appealing and created fear and inigmas
-The use of NVC tended to be more effective than dialogue
-The most effective settings tended to be in damaged buildings or open spaces (eg a field)
-Ordinary houses were less effective for creating suspense in an unfamiliar and visually thrilling setting, however did help to create a believable storyline
-Low key lighting created an eerie setting
-Black and white colour effectively portrayed a change in time or a dream etc

We hope to use this information for our initial ideas and audience questionnaires so that we can build on this and hopefully use what was successful and don't use what wasn't for our own thriller to make it as effective as possible.

Jade Smith

The Aims and Expectations of a Thriller

The Aims and Expectations of a Thriller

We were given an explanation of the aims and expectations of a thriller in order to give us a better understanding of the feelings we should be trying to provoke in the audience in order to plan and produce an effective opening. We used this information to influence our initial ideas.

A thriller creates inigmas which make the audience question what is happening. A thriller evokes feelings such as suspense, fright, mystery and exhilleration etc. rather than more sensitive or emotional feelings such as tragedy. They involve a combination of feelings. Just as a rollercoaster makes us laugh and scream, the thriller often works to double emotions, feelings and sensations; humour and suspense, fear and excitement, pleasure and pain. These double emotions pull the viewer in opposite directions - between anxiety and pleasure, machoism and sadism, identification and detatchement - and this tension is a great part of what gives thrillers their kick.

Jade Smith

Casino Royale - Textual Analysis

Casino Royale 2006 directed by Martin Campbell




The scene opens with a long shot of a car pulling up to an office building at night time, with the on screen colours all in black and white. The setting of night time immediately has connotations of mystery and danger, as no one would work at late hours or through the night. Diegetic and non diegetic sound is used as a man is shown stepping out of the car, looking around, to again emphasise the sense of mystery surrounding this character. The director also uses a match cut of the man looking up in the elevator and the signal in the lift of the floors rising.
As the man enters his office, there is a low angle pan of him walking towards his safe, which is shown to be broken into. This heightens the audience’s feelings as they now suspect danger and the heightened and tenser soundtrack reflects this. As James Bond comes into shot, the man opens his desk drawer with a gun insider, typical iconography for an action thriller film. As the scene progresses, there is a flashback to a fight taking place between Bond and an unknown man, still in black and white.
The non verbal communication that takes place between Bond and Dryden when talking about the kill shows that Dryden knows he is in danger, especially after Bond reveals he has disarmed his gun. This fits in with the narrative of the James Bond films, as the antagonist is shown to have the upper hand, only for Bond to usurp him and emerge victorious. The audience’s expectations are fulfilled when Bond murders Dryden with efficient ease, as this is the opening to a bond film and so the narrative is short to entertain and entice the audience to watch the rest of the film.
From this opening clip, we drew inspiration on using black and white to show flashbacks in our opening, as well as possibly ending the opening with the titles of the piece.


Laurence Ruthven

Cape Fear - Textual Analysis

Cape Fear (1991) Directed by Martin Scorsese.



In terms of cinematography, there is no camera movement used within the title sequence as the focus is on what moves/appears in the space, this is because the images such as the blood and eye are there to set the audience expectations of a thriller film through themes such as fear and violence. These images are shown through extreme closeups (such as the eye and mouth which are under the water) to portray that this person may be iscolated or trapped. As the scene cuts to the next, an extreme close up of a pair of eyes features in a 'negative' effect like a photograph which leads the audience to believe that the images previously shown have happened in the past and she holds the memory of this experience. The camera then reverse zooms to a mid shot of a girl talking about 'Cape Fear', the fact that she is standing in front of a water background and has wet hair also suggests that she is linked to the river and images which appeared through the title sequence. When the scene cuts the the prison setting there is a close up pan of images on the cell wall leading to, through a reverse zoom to a mid shot, the shot of a man exercising which suggests to the audience that he is working to be like the dictators, such as Stalin, by using images of them as inspiration. As he leaves the prison, the camera pans as the guard follows him which establishes his power. The fact that the other prisoners who, unlike him, are sharing cells and watching him leave also emphasizes the importance of this man. Another contribution to this idea is that, as he walks down the stairs, the camera also moves downwards to rejoin him on the level below. This is key as this pan is used rather than a high angle shot from the level above to show that he is not inferior or vulnerable, but powerful and potentially dangerous. A match cut is used to show continuity of the sequence, however his clothes have changes which implies to the audience that time has passed. As he leaves the institution, a wide shot is used to show the setting and he walks into the camera which acts as a threat and succeeds in making the audience wary of this character. Jade Smith
In terms of editing, the opening sequence if Cape Fear uses many cutaways and dissolves to show certain images in the opening titles. The titles start with a sound sting and the anchor of Cape Fear, with the typography matching the dramatic soundtrack being played. The clip also has close up’s of the rippling water accompanied with the diegetic sound of water running. This links in with the title of Cape Fear, and the accompanying cutaways of the eagle, eyes, teeth and face create many connations for the audience. The cutaways in particular create a fearful persona about the man being shown, and make the audience believe that he will be the main antagonist of the film. After the titles, a young girl is shown briefly in black and white, which resembles the past in some way. This is then supported when she says ‘my reminiscence’ and so establishes the narrative of the film. A match cut is then used when the prison gate is opened. This is the only cut used in this sequence, so that the audience can follow and focus on the man shown leaving prison. Laurence Ruthven
The use of Mise-en-scene in Cape Fear effectively portrays the representation and stereotypes of thriller films. Early on in the scene a darkly feathered bird comes into the shot. This implies that something is not right and has connotations of danger. As the opening credits go on the shot is of moving water. As it develops the water turns to red this has associations with blood and violence this stays with the theme of thriller. The use of close-ups of a mouth and eyes give a sense of mystery as we cannot see the characters full face. As the title sequence continues the red water splits in the middle and the middle turns black. As this happens the speed of movement of the water increases. This could be seen as looking like the wave of a life support machine. This has connotations that someone could be in danger or end up on life support perhaps. A major thriller representation is the use of a young girl at the end of the credits. She is blonde and wearing white. In thrillers these are things used to imply innocence. As she tells her story which starts nicely but then turns into a story of terrible horror. We hear her innocence go and it becomes increasingly evident she has been de-sensitised. As we see Robert De Niro’s character in his prison cell the camera tilts down and zooms out to show pictures of dictators and other questionable characters (most noticeably Joseph Stalin). This shows us that the character is someone that could be obsessed with power and has some questionable views. As he leaves the prison and the gates open the camera zooms out to show storm clouds and once the character is outside the prison lighting storm starts. This is as if to say “there is a storm coming “. Matt Simmons The director uses the concept of sound throughout the opening scene to create a sense of mystery and also to build up tension. The opening scene of Cape fear is focused on a lake. The water is made to move with the music, when the music is slow the water has slow ripples but when the music becomes loud and fast so does the ripples. As the camera focuses on the water, we see the reflection of an eagle. As the eagle crosses the water the music becomes louder, this is to show that the bird is dangerous and scary insinuating that the film is going to be similar. The director uses a contrast of digetic and non digetic sound. This is used to create mystery and tension. In the opening scene we here the water flowing, this is used because of how water is one of the scariest elements, non digetic sound is used when we here the music rise in the background, this is used to create a sense of mystery and tension. Elliott Joyner

Final Preliminary

Here is our final premilinary. In this preliminary, we were asked to deomonstrate that we could use the camera and editing room to a goos standard, and also show a match cut, shot reverse shot and a understanding of the 180 degree rule. The main purpose of the preliminary was so that we could understand and use the cameras that we would be using for our final thriller, and so that we could gain a greater understanding of the shots that would form the basics of any film. The preliminary also gave us the chance to use the editing suite, including adding titles and music to our footage to create the final piece.

Laurence Ruthven, Jade Smith, Matthew Simmons, Elliott Joyner

Outakes

Here is an outake compilation of footage that was not used for the final Prelim. We decided to make this outake video to help expand our editing skills.

Production

Production

Throughout the prelim, we encountered problems. Those problems ranged from using the camera and tripod to making sure we didn’t break the 180 degree rule. Using the camera was very complicated to start off with. We found it hard keep the camera steady especially when we filmed a high angled shot on our character walking. Keeping the camera steady whilst walking backwards was a much harder task than we originally thought, it took us over two scenes to accomplish it.

From the Prelim I learnt that it is very easy to get carried away with filming and forget the basics. We learn this the hard way when we were forced to film our Prelim again because we failed to include the basic shots and failed to obey the rules of filming. The main thing that I learnt from shooting the Prelim was how to edit. We were told many times how important it was to understand how to edit because of how crucial it is to make the video flow and make sense to the viewer.

Our original Prelim took us two hours to complete, it took us one hour to film and another hour to edit. It wasn’t until we got our teacher to look at it that he informed us that it was missing all the basic shots that we were asked to include. We then had to film another Prelim which took a similar amount of time but this time was technically correct.

Elliott Joyner

Year 13's Advice

Year 13 offered us advice about the making of our preliminary task, thriller and blogs from their own experiences.
This included:


Filming
-Keep the prelim simple
-Don't overcomplicate the thriller
-Plan all before shooting
-Always use reliable people to help out (friends)
-Don't use a lot of dialogue due to sound quality
-Get permission if filming in public
-If a car is used, make sure it suits the mise en scene
-Use correct lighting because action filmed in the dark may not be visible
-Keep to the 180 degree rule
-Avoid shooting where other people are around
-Don't include a lot of acting which could be ineffective
-Include a variety of shots
-Make sure actors are wearing the same clothes throughout for continuity
-Use suitable weather conditions
-Don't leave shooting to the last minute
-Make sure filming is carried out in the same season to maintain continuity
-Ensure that the camera is charged before filming
-Don't smoke
-Make sure you are fully equipt to film
-Redo all shots in case they aren't good enough
-Always use the tripod


Editing
-Use the correct leads to upload with
-Shoot more footage than needed so editing is easier

Blogs
-Make sure all influences are included
-Use many pictures and videos

Jade Smith