Planning Sound - Miss Miller

The element of sound is one of the most important elements when creating a sequence, especially in the thriller genre because sound is the the main way that the audience feel the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension. Planning sound is important because there are a substantial amount of factors that myself and Krista, my partner, had't thought about. For example, we hadn't thought about where we would use the techniques within the sequence and how it would effect the audience. This is why planning is necessary. Also, writing all of our notes down allowed us to remember everything we needed to include. There are a variety of sound techniques some of which include; digetic sound, this is when the music or sound that belongs within the scene is considered a natural part of the story. E.g. a radio being played in the scene. There is also non digetic sound, this is when sound or music that is added on after in the editing stage. Parallel sound is when the sound and the images on the screen complement each other. Contrapuntal sound is when the sound and image do not complement each other, For example, when a sinister scene is on the screen and happy music is being played in the background. The voice over sound technique is when the dialogue is added to the film during the editing stage. Off screen sound is when you are able to hear the sound but cannot see where it originally comes from. The opposite to this technique is on screen sound and this is used when you can see and hear where the sound is coming from within the film.

As part of the task, we completed a spider diagram with our ideas of sound techniques that we will be using within our piece, stating exactly in which scene we would use them, how it was conventional and how it would make the audience feel. There are a variety of things we need to think about. We need to think about which sounds are mostly seen in thriller films, and the reactions that are created from the audience when they hear these sounds. We also need to consider which sounds techniques we think our target audience want to hear/encounter within our sequence.

The first technique we have decided to use within our thriller opening sequence is off screen sound, this is when you can hear music or sound, but you can't see where it is actually coming from. This is a good technique because it leaves the audience wondering what the source is, and sometimes wonder how it started playing. Not showing the source of the sound can connote to the audience that the person talking is unimportant, and if it is music playing that we cannot see, it often means that the viewers shouldn't be focusing on that and that something more important is coming up on the screen. The use of this technique helps to create suspense and tension for the viewers as something bad could happen on screen at anytime. Within our piece, it will be used to represent the sound of the female victim screaming as she is stabbed, the audience will not see her murder take place. This is because it creates mystery even though the viewers know what has happened. Her screaming but not being seen will portray her as being inferior to the hitman. The fact that she is not shown dying can also give the viewers the suspicion that she wasn't the woman that he was supposed to kill. This creates tension as the audience can't see her falling to her death, but they can imply that the murder has happened. This is conventional because they audience are unaware of what has happened, and this makes them want to watch more of the film. So, the elements of suspense, shock, surprise and tension are all present. The audience build a relationship with the female victim because her death was unnecessary and therefore leaves them feeling sympathetic towards her.

The second technique that we have decided that we will use within our sequence is silence. Silence is very useful within the thriller genre because although no one is saying or doing anything bad that we can see, it doesn't mean it isn't happening. So, with silence, the audience are left in the dark about what is happening as they can't hear anything suspicious. It will be used from the man walking into the house, to when the woman turns around. This is conventional because this creates tension within the audience as it is harder for them to predict what will happen next and the element of surprise is in motion as the viewers are given no warnings.

The third technique myself and Krista decided that we would use within our thriller opening sequence is parallel sound. As previously dictated, parallel sound is when the sounds and the image shown compliment each other. For example, when someone is talking and they show that person. Or it could be if they showed a gun going through something. The image and sound have to match each other. Krista and I decided that we would use this to show when the knife is going into the female victims body several times. This creates tension within the audience because although they cannot see the knife going into the woman's body, the sound of the stabbing can be heard so they are not left unaware. It also creates surprise and shock for the viewers because they didn't expect it to happen especially as it was the wrong woman. This is conventional because shock and tension will be felt during this scene. The audience create a bond with the woman because even though they didn't know her for very long, they know that she didn't deserve to be killed. Therefore, they feel sorry for her because her life shouldn't have been taken away from her. The viewers also create a relationship with the hitman because they feel that he didn't have to kill her and are confused as to why he did. We have seen that he would end somebody's life when given money, and this therefore shows that this man has no mercy, so, the audience are not sure what he is capable of.

The last technique we have decided that we will use within our sequence is non diegetic sound. As mentioned in the introduction, this is when the sound or music is added on during the editing stage. Myself and Krista have decided that it will be used to show the exchange of money taking place. The sinister music will be played at the beginning to connote that it the scene is sinister and evil. This creates enigma immediately because it suggests to the audience that something bad is going to happen during the sequence. This makes the audience prepared as they are given the hint of the sinister music. Although they know something is going to happen, they still feel surprised and shocked when they see what happens because the story line is original and unexpected. This technique is conventional because it keeps the tension built up and therefore means that it is a good thriller piece. This allows the audience to feel a bond and get to know the characters from the beginning as they are introduced.

In conclusion, i now believe that my opening thriller piece will be more effective in creating the right reactions and emotions because i have really thought about how the sounds we will be using for the sequence can be conventional. If they are conventional then that makes the audience more likely to enjoy them and therefore they will feel the right emotions and produce the correct reactions that are needed when viewing a thriller film. I found the planning helpful because it allowed us to really think about how good our ideas could be and it allowed us to go in depth with them.

Planning Editing - Miss Georgiou

Editing styles are important to include within a thriller film because this is what makes the viewers feel the way they do about the scene that they are being shown. Editing styles are normally used within a film to make the story even more interesting than it already is. Various editing styles include; Reaction shot, this is when any shot in which a subject reacts to a previous shot. These shots show the emotions of the character as the audience are shown their faces. This then makes the audience feel a certain way about what they are shown. For example, if the character that is being filmed is crying, the viewers feel sympathetic towards them and want them to be okay. So, the audience create a relationship with them as they feel that they know them well when in fact they don't. Invisible editing, this is when the cuts are intended to be low key for except for special dramatic shots. The technique gives the impression that the edits are motivated by the events in reality on screen. Also, it allows the story to carry on without any interruptions, this makes the audience focus on the events that they are being shown on screen. The viewers end up creating a bond with the characters that they see because they see them so often that they feel that they know them very well. Montage is another style of editing in which is the speed of editing, where shots are quickly juxtaposed together to create excitement. When images are shot in this way, as mentioned, it creates excitement because the audience are being shown the images of a certain event very quickly. This means they must hurry and understand the story of they will be behind and not understand the story. Slow editing, is when clips are put together at a slower pace and this is done to create suspense for the viewers. The viewers want to know what is going on and when the images are shot slowly, they want them to hurry up so they can see what happens next. This builds up the suspense and tension, and normally at the end of the slow editing the audience are left with something that will most likely shock and surprise them. This makes them feel excited because they probably not expecting what they are shown. Fade out editing is when the screen fades to black and this often means an ending to the episode. This leaves the audience feeling unfulfilled and therefore they will want to see more, such as the sequel to the film or if it is an episode, they will want time to go quickly so that their questions can be answered as soon as possible. This builds suspense and tension for the viewers as they are left with a cliffhanger. 

Before creating our thriller opening sequence, myself and my partner, Krista had to plan what types of editing styles/techniques we wanted to include within our piece to achieve our goal of making a successful thriller. We must consider the element of editing and how we can use each technique in the scenes to make the audience feel shock, surprise, suspense and tension. For example, i must consider what styles of editing i will use and which ones will entice the audience the most when watch the opening sequence. I must also decide where and when i will use these various editing styles in order to create different emotions for my target audience. 

As part of the planning task, my partner and i had to create a spider diagram and write down four key editing styles that we want to use within our thriller sequence and in what scenes they would work best in. 

The first editing style we decided we would like to use within our piece is jump cut editing. Jump cut editing is when the film suddenly focuses on something. This is done so that the audience are up to speed with what they have seen and are ready to see the next part. We have decided the camera will suddenly film the man take the knife out of his pocket and the next image will show him about to stab her. This is conventional because the element of suspense is created and built up as the audience want to see what this character is capable of doing. Also, the use of jump cut within a thriller allows the audience to keep up with what is happening as they will be shown the story with more speed because then that way, the next image following the death is shown. The use of the jump cut creates surprise because the audience are unaware of what the character shown is going to do next. This makes the viewers create a relationship with the hitman because they don't want him to kill the woman and they feel that they know him well enough to know that he will do it anyway.

The second editing style my partner and i have decided to use within our piece is the timing of shots editing at a slow pace. Timing shots, this is when shots are either edited slower or quicker to add emotional impact or to create suspense. We will use this when the hitman is getting closer to the woman and killing her it will be in and out of focus to highlight disorientation. This leaves the audience wondering what will happen next. As they ask these questions, they begin to form a relationship with the character because they feel sympathetic towards him as he has been forced to kill this woman.  This is conventional within the thriller genre because it creates the element of suspense as the audience have to wait to see what happens next, so this keeps them gripped on the edge of the seats because they are anticipating for the next thing to happen.

The third editing technique we will be using in our piece is reaction shot. As previously stated, a reaction shot is when we see a character reacting to a shot that has previously been shown. We will use this when the woman quickly turns around just as she is stabbed. The reaction shot will be shown to film the reaction of the woman when she notices the man and the knife. This is conventional to the thriller genre because there is always a female victim and they are always inferior to the killer. Reaction shots are beneficial when creating thrillers because the audience release emotion and therefore, create their own reactions. This is conventional to the thriller as the element of surprise, shock, suspense and tension are present when this editing style is used because the viewers react to what they see and this creates different elements for them. The use of the reaction shot allows a characters emotions to be seen by the audience which then allows them to feel the same. This then makes the audience create bonds with the character on screen because they show their sympathy as they feel that they know the character even though they have only seen them for a very short amount of time.

The last editing style i will be discussing is the kuleshov effect. The kuleshov effect is where two shots equal one meaning. For example, a man holding a gun is one shot and a woman lying on the floor holding her stomach is the other. The implied meaning is that the woman on the floor has been shot by the man with the gun. I will use this within my piece to show the killer stabbing the woman. The next shot that will be shown is the woman lying on the floor with blood on her chest. The audience will imply that the murder has just taken place and can connote that the hitman is the murderer. Again, the element of shock, surprise, suspense and tension are present as the murder was unexpected, therefore making it conventional. The use of this allows the audience to understand what is going on without having to be told everything, it is almost like a hint to the viewers even though it has already been told. This allows the audience to explore their imaginations because they are not being told exactly what has happened, they just know so they imagine the possibilities of the situation ended in this way. The audience create a bond with the hitman because they worry about his mentality as he has just killed a woman because he was asked to. 

In conclusion, the planning of editing styles has help me to create a conventional opening sequence to a thriller film because i have some background knowledge on conventions as i have seen a variety of thriller films myself. It has also helped me because i now know what techniques to include and where i should use them to get the best possible reactions from the audience in order for them to feel the elements of shock, suspense, surprise and tension.

Planning Cinematography - Miss Miller

Cinematography is when photos are put together by manipulating the camera lens, framing, scale and movement in order to make the audience feel a certain way. Cinematography is important in the film making industry because it is what makes the audience get into the film they are watching. Cinematography is when the camera bonds with the lighting to create a wide variety of feelings for the audience. For example, low angle is when the camera is positioned below a person or object, and therefore makes it look larger. This makes the object/person look inferior and stronger. It helps the audience to connote the personality and feelings of the object or character that they are filming. Another angle is high angle and this is hone the camera is positioned above the object or person, making it look smaller. This shows the audience that whatever the camera is filming is weaker. It can also show that there is some activity behind them that they are not aware of, therefore making the character being filmed powerless and oblivious as to what is happening in the background. A movement that is widely used within the thriller genre is point of view (POV) and this is used to the viewers the same image that the characters themselves can see. Panning is also used to show the camera following the character. I believe this is done to help the audience keep up with the story and also to allow the story to unfold as it will be an important scene within the film. A position that is commonly used within films is close ups, and this is when the character is zoomed in on. This is used so that the viewers can see the facial expressions of the person filmed. It allows a relationship to form between the audience and the character. The last position is shallow focus, this is when the main subject on the screen is visible, but the background isn't. This is widely used in thriller and horror films to show that there is something behind the character. It allows the audience to have something to share to the character but the character cannot be told and is therefore unaware. I believe that cinematography is used within films to create the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension to the audience. It also helps to create a variety of emotions for them. For example, if the close up position were to be used and the character filmed was crying, it would make the audience sympathize and get upset as well. It creates a strong bond between character and viewer.

As we are getting closer to making our opening thriller clips, we must plan ahead and i have finished most of the planning. However, i now need to think about what cinematographic elements i will use within my piece and how this will make the audience feel, what it does and how it is conventional. The word 'conventional' is widely used within the film industry to indicate how much something is expected when watching a film of a particular genre. For example, thriller films generally have a female victim, a male killer who is masked and the audience are rarely ever shown their face. Cinematography is a key topic to plan carefully in advance and this helps to produce excellent sequences because they way you use the camera is the way that your audience will see the film. So, if you use a variety of camera techniques to show the story, it will engage your audience more than if you used the same technique throughout.

Myself and Krista completed a spider diagram writing in notes how we would use these camera shots, angles and movements within our opening thriller sequence and where they would be used to create certain feelings for the audience. 

High angle shot, as previously discussed, is when the character is being shot from above them. For example, in the picture on the left, i can see that the camera was placed above James Bond's head in order for the audience to be looking down on him. When films use high angle shots within the piece, i think it makes the character look inferior within the situation in which they are being filmed. It makes them look weaker than the person they are hiding from. In thriller films, the victim is more likely to be filmed this way than the killer. It connotes to the audience that they are weak compared to the antagonist. This is conventional to the thriller genre because in thriller films, the 'hero' is made out to look inferior in the beginning, but usually beats the 'evil' character in end. So, they are made out to look very weak and vulnerable in the beginning. In our opening thriller sequence, myself and Krista have decided that we would use the high angle shot to show the hostage scene taking place. It will be used to film above the hostage, as stated already, this makes the man look weaker compared to the antagonist and therefore, connotes that the antagonist is superior. I believe that it evokes sympathy from the viewers and this then creates a relationship between them and the hostage. This is conventional within the thriller genre because the audience almost always see hostages within thriller films.

The next shot my partner and I have decided to use for our opening piece is the aerial shot. Aerial shot is when the camera is taken at an extremely high angle, for example, from a helicopter, or a person on top of a building. We have decided to use this at the beginning of our opening sequence when the hitman is being paid by the antagonist in the unknown location. This allows the audience to create a bond with each character that they are introduced to because they feel as though they know them better. This then creates enigma because the audience begin to ask questions because they want to know the rest of the story and have their questions answered. It also shows the story unfolding and gives the audience what they want. Also, it allows them to understand the image they are being shown because they know that what they see now is a reference as to what will happen later on in the film. I think this is conventional to the thriller genre because it sets the scene and makes the audience wonder what will happen next, this will have them gripped to the edge of their seats unable to control the excitement and this therefore creates tension as they want to see what happens. Aerial shots are conventional as they allow the audience to get a good view of where the situation that is about to occur is taking place. In films such as Halloween, in the opening sequence, the audience can see that there is a date and a place name, this shows the viewers where and when what they are about to show has occured. The use of aerial shots can be used to show this information.

The third technique myself and my partner Krista have decided to use within our piece is the canted angle. This will be used to show the hitman waking up on the floor as he is taken hostage. This creates the element of confusion to represent how the character is feeling at this exact moment in time. It helps the audience to feel what the character is feeling This is conventional to the thriller genre because it allows the audience to understand how the characters within the scene are feeling. For example, to the left, the image is clearly canted, therefore making the scene look shaky and disorientated. This can perfectly describe the situation as the characters in the image. This is often seen in thriller films as it can often describe the victims well. Also, when there are fight scenes or chase scenes, the audience often see canted angles being used to highlight the element of confusion that the victim within the scene may be feeling. This then creates that relationship between the audience and the character because they can relate as they are being shown the same thing and this allows them to build a relationship with the characters on screen because they often feel sympathy for the victims, who are often used in canted angle shots.  Using this angle helps to portray a psychological theme as the audience know that the man is confused. Psychological themes in the thriller genre are good themes to use because they allows the audience to think about what has happened and stay synced in with the story. This allows the viewers to wonder what happened and how the man ended up there.

Close ups are often used in thriller films. A close up shot is when the characters face is filmed rather than their whole body. This is done so that the audience focus on nothing else other than the facial expression of the character being filmed. Myself and Krista will be using this within our opening thriller sequence to show the emotion of the antagonist smiling when he sees his wife's dead body on the floor. The camera will zoom into his face to show his delight and evilness. This will make the audience feel slightly uncomfortable towards the antagonist because they know that he is troubled and it makes the audience fear him as they do not know what he is capable of. This helps the audience to create a relationship with the antagonist because because they feel slightly sorry for him because deep down he is heart broken about his wife cheating on him. Also, the use of the close up shot can make it clear to the audience how they are supposed to feel when they see the image on the screen. For example, if the character shown was crying, this would make the audience feel emotional. As they are feeling what she is feeling, they build a relationship with that character because they don't want them to feel upset. This is conventional because it creates tension as well as emotion for the viewers due to the fact they see the personality of the character and therefore feel as though they know the antagonist well enough to see that he is capable of anything. The use of close up shots is conventional within the thriller genre due to the fact that it can express how someone is feeling as it zooms in on their face. It is conventional because when victims are about to die or have just witnessed the 'evil', their face is automatically zoomed in. This is typically seen in thrillers to make the audience feel uneasy or scared for the victim, because they can see their facial expressions.

Point of view is often used in thriller films because it allows the audience to see the same thing that the character does. This is when instead of filming the character, all the viewers can see is what is in front of them. This is the last technique that my group and I have decided to use in our piece to show the hitman walking up to the woman. This shows the view of the killer. This is conventional because it creates suspense and mystery as the viewers are left in the dark as to why the man is actually killing the woman when he could have just ran away. This then allows the viewers to create a special bond with the hitman because they are technically in the same position that the character is in. So, they feel as though they know that person better. Also, if this is used by the antagonist (the audience see what they see), this would them make them fear that person even more knowing what is about to happen next. This makes the audience build a relationship of fear with the antagonist as they do not know what they are capable of doing. Point of view is conventional to the thriller genre because it is one of the only ways to make the audience see what either the victim see or the 'evil' person see. Also, i have noticed that when films use point of view shots, they either use it when the 'evil' person is looking for the victim, this makes the audience fear what happens next because they know that the victim isn't far from where they are looking. Or, they use pov to show the victim hiding or running away from the antagonist.

In conclusion, i believe that using these particular camera angles, shots and movements will not only allow the film to look better but they also participate in making the audience feel the elements of surprise, suspense, shock and tension and this is very much needed when creating a thriller opening sequence. These techniques are conventional to the thriller genre because they are widely used within the film industry to portray certain images to the audience and this gives them a particular reaction which will make the piece a success. I think the planning of cinematography within our film was helpful because it allowed us to think our ideas out to see how each technique would effect the audience. Thanks to the planning, we were able to re think some our ideas and therefore, our opening thriller sequence will be even better than expected.

Planning Mise En Scene - Miss Georgiou

All five elements of mise en scene are necessary when creating a successful thriller opening sequence. Each part of the mise en scene topic is important in various ways as they all have different roles when making a film as well as composing emotions to the audience so that they know how they are supposed to feel at certain times of the sequence. For example, settings and locations are key elements in the film making industry as they are used in order to make the audience feel a certain way which then makes the film more important later on. If the film is set in an abandoned cabin in the woods, this can make the audience feel fearful as they will not know what will happen next to the characters involved in the scene. Hair, makeup & costumes all help the audience understand the role of the character shown on screen. It also helps the characters to portray their personalities by how they look and dress. It can also indicate to the audience what era the film was made in. It can show to the viewers that films have changed since then. Facial expressions and body language indicate what is happening to the character and how the audience should feel. It also allows the audience to connote the relationships displayed between characters. Positioning is also a key element within the mise en scene topic as it can demonstrate different relationships between characters to the viewers. This helps the audience to focus as there may be some clues within the positioning that can help the viewers understand why they feel this way towards each other. Finally, lighting and colour are important when creating a film as they can help the audience to connote the mood and the type of scene that will be displayed. For example, if there is low key lighting, the audience can connote that there will be something hiding that they cannot see yet or there could be an unwanted dark presence. If the elements are combined correctly within a film, the audience will feel the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension and this will then make the film a success.

When planning our thriller opening sequence, i must consider the element of mise en scene in order to make sure i don't miss out any information to include in my piece. For example, i must think about settings and iconography, this means where the film is shot, and the types of objects used and shown to show the audience what is going to happen. I must think about costumes and how they can indicate to the viewers the personality and role of the character within the sequence. I will talk about facial expressions and body language, this must be portrayed correctly so that the audience know exactly what is happening and how they should feel at this moment in time as they see the faces of the characters. This can also be a clue to them so that they can guess what is going to happen. Lighting and colour is included and i will use this to show the emotions of the characters filmed, and depending on where the film is set in different places, the lighting will change to show the meaning behind the scene and setting. Costumes is an important factor when making a thriller themed opening,  because the colours they wear can indicate what their personalities are and this will create hints to the audience so they can piece the story together and create their own theories. Positioning of the characters is also an important factor to consider because it can show emotion without dialogue.

As part of the planning task, my partner and I drew a spider diagram explaining the key elements of mise en scene we were to include within our sequence as well as including key examples of where in our opening we would use them. We also had to explain why these elements were conventional and how it could make the audience feel when looking at these certain things in the sequence.

The first topic we had to think about is setting and iconography. As I previously explained, this is where the film is set and its different locations and what objects the characters use within the scene to help the audience connote what will happen next without telling them directly. This allows the audience to think about things themselves rather than get told all the answers. Myself and my partner have decided to use a variety of settings to help the audience feel the way they are supposed to when watching a thriller. This will also give the audience a chance to get to know the characters and portray the relationships to the viewers before getting in depth with the story. One of the settings that we will use is the house of the wife and antagonist. This will be used to show the hit man killing the woman in her own home after he is paid to kill her by her husband. This creates a sense of realism as the house is a normal place that everyone lives in. The killing helps to attach the audience to the character so that the emotions of the character can be reflected on the audience as they will feel sympathy. So, this will also create the element of shock, surprise, suspense and tension as the audience will want to help the woman get away from the hitman but can't. I think this setting is conventional due to the fact that it is a realistic setting, so the audience can be scared as they will imagine themselves in this position. It is also conventional because it is quiet and the woman is the only one in the house at this time. So, no one will be around to witness the murder and therefore, she will not be helped. During the beginning of the sequence, the hitman will be in an unknown location. This means that the audience will not actually find out where it is, nor is it important to the story. This setting will be used to show the hostage scene. Due to the fact that it is quiet and isolated, it will make the hitman feel even more nervous, which will make the audience feel the same emotion. 

Another element of mise en scene that my partner and i must consider within our opening thriller sequence is costumes. Whilst making our spider diagram we carefully thought about what each character within our sequence should wear in order to portray them properly and so that the audience tell who they are. We have decided that the antagonist will be wearing jeans and a t-shirt that will be covered by a black jacket. The colour of the jacket being black will signify death and this will help the audience to recognize them easily and quickly. The second character is the hitman and this character will be wearing a plain outfit of a simple white t-shirt and jeans. The colour white can represent purity and innocence to a certain extent. The choice of clothes will be worn to suggest to the audience that he is not the real antagonist. Lastly, the female victim will be wearing an everyday outfit which will be a pair of jeans and a top and this can connote to the audience that this character is not very important. Therefore, telling the viewers that she is the wrong person. The choice of costume also helps to suggest that she was unprepared for this visit and therefore making her a convention. 

Another element in which we must plan carefully is lighting & colour. We have decided that we will be using low key lighting to show the murder scene which will cast shadows and this will represent an evil presence. It can also suggest to the audience that something bad will happen to someone within the house and this helps to create tension. This is conventional as it will create the elements of surprise and tension which are essential when making a thriller piece. The second effect that we will be using is the 'blue effect'  on top of some scenes including the scene where the hitman is held hostage. This will help to create a cold feel to the scene and also shows the audience that something bad is going to happen within this scene that will effect the rest of the story. This then builds up the element of suspense right up to when he does the deed he has been asked to do. When showing the hostage scene, the audience will feel surprised and shocked as they will not have expected this to happen, this makes them more engaged in what they are watching and allows them to want to watch more. This is conventional to the thriller genre as the elements of shock and surprise are being used and these are key elements in which the audience must feel in order for the sequence to be branded a 'thriller'. The shock and surprise that the viewers will feel will help them to create bonds and relationships with the characters.

As a group, we also planned what facial expressions the characters will have as well as the positioning of each character. This will be useful to the story as it will help viewers see certain relationships between characters. We both decided that the hitman and the antagonist must have some distance between them to show a clear division. It can also show the audience that they are not the same at all as one is more evil than the other. We decided that the facial expressions of the female will be shocked and scared in order to show a realistic expression of a woman who is about to have her life taken away from her. This is conventional because her expression will show the element of surprise and shock as her mouth will be open to represent her not expecting this to happen. This then helps to make the audience feel shock and surprise as it is unexpected and as this evokes a sense of realism, the audience will be able to relate more as if they were in the woman's place and this then makes the viewers emotional. Again, this is conventional as the elements of shock and surprise are being used and this is key when creating a successful thriller.

The final element within mise en scene that my partner and i have to think about when planning our opening thriller sequence is body language. This element is key when creating a thriller as it helps to portray the different relationships between various characters in order to help the audience imply what the film could lead to aswell determine each characters role within the sequence. We decided that the hitman will look very scary when killing his victim, as well as stabbing the woman with a relative amount of force so that he kills her. This can connote to the audience that he has never killed anyone before today. It also shows that he is stronger than his victim and this then makes it conventional as she is unsuspecting and therefore, makes it easier for the hitman to kill her. Although he does kill someone, the audience create a bond with him as he is felt sorry for because he didn't want to kill the woman, but was forced to. 

To conclude, the planning of  mise en scene will help me when creating my opening thriller sequence as i know that i must add the different elements of mise en scene in order to create as much shock, surprise, suspense and tension as possible. I have learned many things when planning for the opening especially knowing how each element will be conventional and how the audience will feel aswell as creating different bonds and relationships with each individual character.

Planning Individual Narrative - Miss Georgiou

The purpose of a narrative in a film is to give the audience the key elements that are needed in order for the film to be classed as a thriller. A narrative is a the way the story is put together. Storytelling is one of the only ways that people can communicate their problems and stories to other people. The characters in movies show their emotions and feelings to the audience. This makes the viewers feel a certain way about what they are watching. For example, a thriller must have the element of shock, so that they are scared but not scared too much that they don't want to watch the film. Being scared of what you are watching can actually make you want to watch it more. It gives you a 'thrill' hence the name of the genre, 'thriller'. The narrative is always shown chronologically, the story starts as something that has already happened, moving into the future, e.g 'Halloween', the story is fast forwarded to the end, then is shown at the beginning, and the film starts completely from the beginning to help the viewers understand what they are watching. When analysing a narrative, the audience are watching the way the story is put together to see if it makes sense and if the viewers understand what they are seeing without any confusion. The narrative is the main part of the film because of the way it is structured, if it is structured correctly, it can make the film a success due to it not being too hard to understand. If it isn't structured correctly, it can leave the audience unsettled and wanting more answers than they are given. It can also leave the audience baffled about the story and believing that what they just watched was a waste of time and money. In order to properly understand a narrative and see if it has been used correctly, there are four codes and conventions that need to be considered; genre, when looking at the narrative, the audience can see that many of their characteristics are similar, so this is where genre comes from. Character, the way the characters are, for example, in thriller films, there is a victim, a killer, and the people who help the victim or the killer. There is also action, the way the action is shown can show if the narrative is good. It helps to structure the narrative so that the story makes sense. Location is the last of the codes and conventions as it is a key element as to how the story unfolds and develops as the film progresses.

I have a variety of ideas for my narrative, however, my main idea will be called 'Amnesia'. This will be about one man who has held another man hostage. The man is held hostage until he agrees to kill the mans wife due to the fact that she cheated on him. The man pays the hostage aswell as giving him photos. The hitman agrees to kill the woman and so he goes to the home of the woman which is the mans house aswell, and stabs her. He calls the antagonist telling him that the deed has been completed and the antagonist comes. The last scene will show the antagonist looking down at the dead body of his wife and smiling.

Conventions are certain things in the film that the audience expect to see due to the genre of the film. In my scene, the conventions are the female victim (damsel in distress), psychological theme (man forgetting who he is and where he is - amnesia), murder weapon (knife), shock, suspense, surprise, tension. There is also a realistic location (house), aswell as low key lighting (as the man kills the woman and when he is held hostage). The tension builds up during the scene. The fact that they will not see the hitman again can make the audience feel as though they are not sure what he is now capable of. There is silence at the killing, except for when the woman screams and this allows the audience to express their thoughts, it also shows that no sinister music needs to be played because the killing has now taken place.

Another idea i have is to create a story about a woman named Betty who was killed a ten years ago and the murder investigation is still going on. The police interview the widowed man, Ronald, and his two children to see if they have any new information or if they have any new suspects in mind. The police believe that Ronald killed Betty but have no evidence to prove that he did it. The film then goes on to show Betty's life leading up to the death. We see her fall in love with Ronald and her fall pregnant with the twins. When she starts work again, she has a new secretary named James who is very flirtatious, not suspecting any flirting, Betty got on with her work. Later on in life, we see James slowly falling in love with Betty. Betty comes home one night, and the twins are fast asleep but Ronald is no where to be found. Betty begins to worry and calls Ronald who claims that he is still at work but hears a woman's voice in the background. Betty hangs up and suspects that Ronald is having an affair. The next day, Betty gets her own back by flirting with James. Things get serious very quickly and a love affair begins with James and Betty behind Ronald's back. Not wanting their secret to go on any further, Betty ends the affair but James becomes violent stating that he will tell Ronald everything. Ignoring James' claims she leaves his apartment and goes home. She arrives in her home but Ronald is standing in front of her with a furious look on his face. He knows. A lot of yelling goes on, and Ronald picks up a knife as the argument begins to get intense. Betty steps back slowly and grabs a knife herself. Ronald believes she is doing it to protect herself, but she grabs the knife and says 'I can't live like this anymore, my children don't deserve a mother like me'.  Tears come tumbling down her face and she picks the knife and stabs herself.

The conventions in this idea of a narrative is the weapons, the knives used. This makes it expected from the audience because knives are one of the most commonly used weapons in thriller films. However, i still believe that the element of shock, surprise and suspense will be created by the knives because of the characters who are using them. The audience create a bond with each of the characters and feel like they know them well, so to see them with a potential murder weapon makes the audience feel scared and this is what makes a good thriller. Another convention is the use of the plot twist, when Betty kills herself, it is a shock because the worst that the audience expected was that Ronald would kill her because of what she had done.

In conclusion, i have decided to choose my first idea, 'amnesia' instead of the other idea because i believe it will shock the viewers more. The audience rarely see a narrative about the killer losing their memory. My first idea will create shock, suspense, surprise and tension in this short clip because of all the different elements that will be included in our opening thriller sequence. It will make the audience feel connected to the film, and even if they don't want to watch more, they end up watching the rest of it because they are hooked on the story and want to see how it ends. The target audience for this sequence will be teenagers of the age 15 and above. I think these types of viewers will want to watch our thriller because it contains what a believe is a rare and original narrative and a murder weapon that is typically used in thriller films. This is a psychological thriller so any viewers of a younger age are more likely to have the effect of trauma and are more likely to be scared about it.

Preliminary Task - Miss Miller

In this task we were placed into groups, my group consisted of myself and Krista. We were given this preliminary task in order to understand and develop our skills on how to use the equipment needed for filming such as using a tripod. These skills will be necessary when creating our own thriller opening sequence. We were also asked in order to be able to create different angles, for example, midshot. We were asked to film a short clip which had to be a maximum of 1 minute long. We had to film a conversation about anything we wanted using different camera shots and angles. We decided to go outside on the benches near the basketball courts and film ourselves having a catch up. When the film was completed, we had to transfer it to our computers and edit it using 'Final cut' which is a movie editing application. Learning about how to use 'Final cut' has helped me because i need to know how to use this in order to edit my opening sequence for a thriller film. Myself and Krista then had to talk about how well the filming had gone and give ourselves an overall review of how well we thought our film was.

We were asked to include 5 different camera shots and angles within our short clip. These included; Panning, mid shot, long shot, over the shoulder and close up. We were given a maximum of 40 minutes to create our pieces. Myself and Krista believe that some of the shots and angles were easier to create than others. For example, over the shoulder was a difficult angle to film as there were only two of us, it took us a long time to keep angling it correctly as well as pressing the pause button every time the other person spoke. When arriving to edit our scene, we noticed that some of our clips were missing, therefore, we weren't able to make a film that was long enough and it didn't include all of the cinematography techniques that we were asked to use. Not having our clips has taught me not to waste as much time worrying about what the conversation should have been about, and to not panic over not doing the conversation correctly, we also should have taken this more seriously. It has also shown me that filming is not as easy as it looks because it requires skill and we both realized that we needed to practice more before creating our opening sequences so that we received a better review than what we did on this clip.

Panning: This is the first shot that we used in our clip. In order to do this, we had to put our video camera onto the tripod and made sure that it didn't fall by placing it in a fixed position. I slowly followed Krista walking along to the bench and made sure that the camera was steady in order to film correctly. In the clip, panning can be seen from 0:16 to 0:24. I believe i did a good job in filming Krista entering this scene because panning must be steady and straight in order to get a good shot. I think that this shot was the easiest part to film compared to other shots and angles because we were able to use a tripod. Myself and Krista decided that we would use the panning technique in our own opening sequence for our thriller clips.

Over The Shoulder: We used this shot within our scene in order to show the audience the facial expression of the person that was being filmed. This makes the conversation flow very well. This shot was easy enough to film, however, it was hard at some points because we were limited with time so we had to keep stopping and being quick when shooting. But overall, it was quite easy to do because we would just have to place the camera on the tripod then film then stop filming then move the tripod to the other side. This will help us in the future as we will be able to estimate how long it will take us to film accurately.

Due to the clips being lost on the camera, we were not able to film all of the 5 angle and shots that we were required to film. We also wasted a lot of time deciding who was going to say each part of the clip so we ended up not having a lot of time left to film the rest. We also had to edit the film afterwards, so we therefore didn't have a lot of time to put the clips together. Towards the end, we realized that the story line wasn't main part of the filming, and all we needed to do was base our knowledge of cinematography into our piece in order to create a good piece.  I believe that if we hadn't wasted so much time on the conversation, i think that we would have done a good job and we would have learnt a lot of new techniques. When making a clip, i now know that the planning time is the most important time.

After the video was completed, we had to move on to the editing stage. I used the 'Final Cut' software to edit my clip on the macs available in class. I learnt how to upload videos and pictures from a computer or a camera to the mac. I then learnt how to preview each clip individually that we filmed together and the ones that we wanted to use, we would drag them down onto a timeline. Then, i learnt how to cut and delete clips in order for the clip to fit together. In order to trim, you click the video and a line appears and you just move it forward so that it cuts out the unnecessary parts of the clip. 

In conclusion, i have learnt how to film using a video camera and including specific techniques that are used within the cinematography. I have also learnt that i need to manage my time better so that myself and my partner have enough time to film all of the clip and have time to edit and we didn't have enough time to finish in class so we had to stay behind for a few minutes as we edited our clip. I have also learnt that i must keep checking the video camera to make sure it is filming exactly what i want to film. This has helped me learn how i want to film for my thriller opening sequence.

Group Narrative - Miss Georgiou

My first idea is to create a story about a woman named Betty who was killed ten years ago and the murder investigation is still going on. The police interview the widowed man, Ronald, and his two children to see if they have any new information or if they have any new suspects in mind. The police believe that Ronald killed Betty but have no evidence to prove that he did it. The film then goes on to show Betty's life leading up to the death. We see her fall in love with Ronald and her fall pregnant with the twins. When she starts work again, she has a new secretary named James who is very flirtatious, not suspecting any flirting, Betty got on with her work. Later on in life, we see James slowly falling in love with Betty. Betty comes home one night, and the twins are fast asleep but Ronald is no where to be found. Betty begins to worry and calls Ronald who claims that he is still at work but hears a woman's voice in the background. Betty hangs up and suspects that Ronald is having an affair. The next day, Betty gets her own back by flirting with James. Things get serious very quickly and a love affair begins with James and Betty behind Ronald's back. Not wanting their secret to go on any further, Betty ends the affair but James becomes violent stating that he will tell Ronald everything. Ignoring James' claims she leaves his apartment and goes home. She arrives in her home but Ronald is standing in front of her with a furious look on his face. He knows. A lot of yelling goes on, and Ronald picks up a knife as the argument begins to get intense. Betty steps back slowly and grabs a knife herself. Ronald believes she is doing it to protect herself, but she grabs the knife and says 'I can't live like this anymore, my children don't deserve a mother like me'.  Tears come tumbling down her face and she picks the knife and stabs herself.

Strengths: I think this is a good narrative because it contains an original story and this will appeal as well as attract the audience that are viewing my opening thriller sequence because it will be something they have never seen before so it will be unexpected. Also, it contains many conventions such as death, a female victim and a knife. The audience want to watch more because they will understand the story as it develops because it is an easy story to follow. It provides the viewers with the element of shock, surprise, suspense, shock and tension.

Weaknesses: I think it is interesting in some ways, however, it needs something else in it to make the story more interesting and appeal to the audience. I think it lacks creativity as well as imagination because although it provides the viewers with an original story, it may not grip the audience as well as it could have.

Krista's idea was very different to mine as she is basing her story on the theme of kidnap. She has explained what features she would want to include when filming this such as low key lighting, sinister music as well as a female victim. Some camera angles that she wants to include are the canted angle and this is done to show the confusion of the girl, as well as using and close ups to show confusion and the emotions. This makes the audience engage with the characters on screen. Low key lighting would be used when the girl is trapped in the abandoned cabin to show that something dark is happening.

Strengths: This story is very good and krista has gone into detail about what cinematographic elements she wants to use. It is also a good story as it contains all the elements that the audience want to see when watching a thriller themed film.

Weaknesses: The story needs work to make it more interesting, I believe it is a common narrative and therefore, some viewers may have seen this story before. This will make them less interested and less eager to see it.

As a group, myself and Krista decided that out opening sequence will have the theme of a psychological thriller. The beginning of the narrative will show a man that wakes up in an unknown location, he is unaware where he is and who he is. The antagonist of the plot has captured the man to kill his wife, her lover and anyone who knows about the love affair. The antagonist gives pictures of his wife to the hitman aswell as money in which he will take in exchange for killing the woman. The hitman is released and kills the woman. He arrives at her home, and she is killed very quickly, oblivious that this was going to happen. The last scene will show the hitman calling the antagonist to tell him that the deed is done. The antagonist is shown looking down at the dead body of his wife and smiling.

Before we had chosen what our idea would be, we had to both think of ideas individually and try to bond both of them together in order for us to both be happy with our idea. My idea was that we should create the element of amnesia in the sequence. Krista's idea was to make the opening thriller sequence have a psychological theme as we know this is what the audience likes to see the most.

Strengths: I have included a variety of themes with help from the Aristotle theory, such as an inciting incident, i believe that this makes the story more interesting because the audience will want to see how the sequence finishes. It makes the audience want to watch on to see if the people involved in the incident survives. There is also a character goal, the goal of the antagonist is to have his wife dead, which soon takes place. This story will include a killing, a damsel in distress and a psychological theme, i think that this creates the element of shock, surprise, suspense and tension for the viewers because it will be unexpected. It also includes an antagonist and he will be obvious to the audience as the antagonist straight away. This will surprise the audience because they will not have expected the story to be so shocking and complex.

Weaknesses: One weakness of my idea are that it would take a long time to create this sequence and i will need to film at various locations. The idea of a psychological theme is hard to create, so i must make sure i use the right camera techniques and shots in order to portray the correct images for the viewers to understand correctly what is going on. We must also make sure that we display the relationships of the characters correctly in order to show the theme effectively and this will allow the audience to keep up with the story.

When constructing the group narrative, my partner mentioned that we should use a psychological theme, and i thought of the idea of 'amnesia' taking place. Therefore, we created the idea of this story together using different ideas around the theme so the narrative was creative and original. I believe that we worked well in creating a theme quickly and effectively, i also think it is a good narrative because of the fact that it contains so many themes which support Aristotle's theory. Other theories include Todarov and Propp's. Todarov believed that all fairy tales had equilibrium and disequilibrium. This means that in this type of film, the film would start as good, then it the story would go badly, an issue would come up, and at the film would end with all of the characters being happy. One thing to consider is that both equilibriums are not the same, they are transformed to make the story more interesting. The problem that occurs is not normally to do with the main story, it is usually someone trying to get in the way of the main character to avoid them getting to their goal in the film. Myself and Krista didn't use this to create our group narrative because thriller films do not usually end up with a good ending. They usually end with someone dying or with the family of the victim grieving over the death. For example, The Purge. The other theory was created by Vladamir Propp, he was only interested in the making of fairy tales and the characters in them and how they were similar in each one. He believed that there are 8 types of characters, The hero, the villain, the donor, the dispatcher, the fake hero, the helper, the princess and the father. These characters must be included in every film because thats what makes it the way it is. Myself and Krista couldn't use this theory within our group narrative due to the fact that Vladimir Propp based his theory mainly on fairy tales. As we are creating a thriller film, this theory cannot be used. We are also not using all of these types of characters, so Propp's theory is useless.

Therefore, my group and i have decided to use Aristotle's theory because in Aristotle's theory, there should be key themes within our piece; an inciting incident, a dramatic question, character goal, antagonist/protagonist, stakes, resolution and sympathy/empathy. Our film incorporates a character goal which is evident within our thriller opening sequence. We will use the character goal theme when showing the man held hostage unless he agrees to kill the wife of the man, when he takes the money, he is immediately classed as hitman. This will make the audience feel shocked, and surprised due to them not knowing that this was going to happen. It was unexpected and that's what makes thriller films so good, it is because no one ever expects to see what they do and when they do, they become scared and gripped to the edge of their seats. The next theme that myself and Krista have decided to use is the theme of antagonist/protagonist, the protagonist within this opening sequence is the person who paid the hit man to kill his wife. This creates shock for the audience because as previously stated, they will not have been expecting these events to be happening. This is common within the thriller genre, so it allows people to understand the story better. The last theme that i have chosen to do is the theme of an inciting incident taking place. This is used when the wife is killed by the hitman. The audience feel terrified towards the hitman because as he was given money, he was willing to kill the woman straight away, so the viewers don't know what he is truely capable of. Also, the audience feel slightly sorry for the female victim, although she was cheating on her husband. she didn't deserve to die for it. In some ways, the antagonist also deserves sympathy as he, deep down, is very upset and heartbroken about the situation, however, only the anger has come through. Now that the audience have seen that the hitman is capable of anything, they then think into the future about what could happen. This then allows them to create their ideas and theories about what will happen in the end.

Overall, i believe that our thriller sequence is conventional because it includes the main features that need to be in a thriller to make it a thriller. This means that the audience will be expecting some of what happens, but some of the features they will not expect, this makes it a good thriller because the elements of shock, surprise, suspense and tension will be in use. 

Research Into Conventions Of Thrillers - Miss Miller

Conventions are what the audience expects when watching a certain type of film. For example, in thriller films we expect certain things, because the viewers have seen them used before. Some conventions of thriller films include blood, damsel in distress, silence, female victims, realistic settings, guns, and sinister music etc. I have decided to analyse a clip from the film 'The Purge'. The audience see a man who has been hurt lying on the stairs with his wife and son. The daughter then kills the villain. However, the viewers then see people coming in who have helped them, but, everything is not as it seems when they see that they were on the villain's side the whole time.


I have noticed a variety of conventions in 'The Purge' such as death. In 'The Purge' the main character is killed because he tried to protect his own family. In the thriller genre, death is one of the main factors making the film a thriller. Death is also a sign used in thrillers, it is normally used to show that the villain has won, and has made a mark. In thriller films, the death normally makes the film more interesting and is the reason for what happens later on. It is scary and it makes the audience release emotions that they wouldn't normally release whilst watching films. It affects the whole story in some way and this is how the viewers understand what is going on. The use of death within the film creates tension aswell as shock as the audience were not expecting the death of the character. However, in some films, the antagonist kills more than one person, which is why they may expect some of the murders to take place, This is conventional within the thriller genre because death is the symbol of evil. Therefore, showing the audience that the antagonist has won and shows them that they can easily do it again, making the audience fear them aswell as not know what they are capable of. Death is also conventional as it allows the audience to feel emotions when certain people are dead. This then makes it hard for the audience to build a relationship with that character following their death. However, they still feel sorry for him because they know that he was a good person and didn't deserve to die. They then build a relationship with the family as they feel sympathy for them, they also begin to imagine being placed in their shoes, which allows them to release their emotions.

In this scene another convention i have noticed is the plot twist.The viewers then see the blonde woman and other people enter the room and say that the family are 'theirs'. The faces of the remaining family members change as they realize what is going on. This is a plot twist because the audience as well as the characters didn't know that it was going to happen. This was unexpected to the story. Therefore, it creates the element of shock and surprise as the viewers must wait to see what happens next. They know that it will most likely end badly for the family because the audience are used to watching sad scenes as thrillers do not usually end well. The plot twist is conventional to the thriller genre because it makes the viewers feel shocked as they aswell as the characters feel betrayed because everything they have known in the film is a lie. The use of the plot twist against the family allows the audience to create a bond with them because they know that they don't deserve to be hurt or killed as they have done nothing wrong. The audience started to build a relationship with the other four people as they were 'helping' the family. However, as soon as the audience understood that they were decieved, they are unable to create a relationship with them due to the evilness that they have witnessed.

this picture the audience can clearly see that the main character, the father, has died. But, before this, the audience have noticed that there are four people who helped out the family by killing the people who were attacking them.

Screaming is another convention that it used in most thriller films.
The audience can see this when the families are separated by the shock antagonists. The screaming gives the audience a warning that something bad will happen, it is a way of communicating to the audience without actually speaking to them. I believe that screaming is a way of asking for help from the audience and it also shows vulnerability due to the fact that no one will be able to save them as they have all been captured. The makes the audience feel scared for them as they know it will be impossible for them to escape. The use of this convention creates shock and suspense as the audience must wait to see what happens next after hearing the screaming. Therefore, it also creates tension because the audience are impatient to find out what will happen. Screaming is conventional to the thriller genre because it makes the audience feel sympathy for that character, also, it makes the viewers want to help them, therefore allowing a relationship to be built because they do not feel as though the character deserves to be going through what is happening.

Another convention in this scene is the sinister music playing in the background. The audience can hear the music playing during the whole scene and this creates the effect that bad things are and will happen so that the audience can be prepared. The sinister music in the background creates a mood on the audience so that they feel scared before the film. The audience feel scared and this way know something bad is going to happen to the characters in the scene. From the music we can also connote that the possibility that it ends badly is high. The use of this convention creates suspense and tension as it is often used to promote the presence of the antagonist. Therefore, the audience know that something sinister will happen within the next scenes, this will make them feel fear as well as shock. Sinister music is almost always heard in thriller films and this is conventional to the thriller genre because it makes the viewers feel on edge about what they are seeing aswell as hearing on the screen. When hearing this, the audience feel suspense and tension, waiting for what is going to happen next, which is the aim of a thriller. A strength of using sinister music is that when it is played in the background, it will often start slow and build up, this creates the element of tension and also makes the shots more dramatic, leading up to what is going to happen next. Sinister music is often played when the character is hiding from the antagonist, and this therefore allows a relationship to be built with the victim as the audience feel sympathy towards that character. This is because they then picture themselves in the shoes of that person, making it harder to watch the upcoming scenes.

The last convention in this clip is low key lighting. The audience can clearly see that the lighting is dark in this scene. I believe that the use of the darkness allows the scene to feel 'evil'. For example, it can connote to the audience that there is a dark presence around, also, the use of the death within this scene is dark and scary, so the darkness can also highlight this to the viewers. I believe that this will make the viewers feel uneasy as it can warn the viewers that the 'evilness' is not over yet. As the scene progresses, the audience can then see that the plot twist occurs, where the friends of the wife 'Mary' turn against her and want to kill her family. This is a very dark scene, therefore the audience can understand why. Also, the use of the darkness can also connote that there was an evilness lurking in the shadows and the viewers were unable to see it because it was unexpected. The low key lighting is a convention to the thriller genre because it is a warning, therefore producers often use it to give the audience a hint that they are unable to see. This then creates shock and suspense as the viewers didn't see what they were supposed to in order to not be surprised in the next scenes. This makes the characters feel a bond with whoever is on the screen due to what they can see with the low key lighting because they know that as well as themselves, the characters will also not expect what is about to happen or has already happened.

In conclusion, i have learnt that i need to include things that are used in most thriller films so that the audience can predict what will happen in my opening sequence. I will include screaming, sinister music and other conventions in the thriller piece. This research has helped me understand conventions of the genre because i was able to see how and why they are used within the thriller genre. I was able to piece together similarities between various thriller films aswell as connote what they mean to the audience. There are a variety of inspirations i will take on board such as the use of screaming, as mentioned, i believe that this convention will really shock the viewers, making them feel on edge in their seats. I will also use sinister music in the background of my opening thriller sequence in order to make the audience feel suspense and tension as they wait to see what is going to happen next. For example, i will use this just as the murder scene is about to come up, therefore, the audience will see that something fearing is coming up.

Inspirations - Miss Georgiou

Before creating my own thriller opening sequence, it is necessary that i think of all of the elements that i have researched within various film scenes and evaluate whether i would like to include them in my opening piece. I will need to think hardly about this and once i have made my decision as to what elements i want to add, i will then need to add different things to it so that it can have the best effects on the audience. These inspirations are taken from various places such as; Television, films, pictures, tv programmes and music videos. Mainly, my inspirations come from movie clips that i have previously watched on youtube.

When looking at the individual narrative, i felt very inspired when i saw the clip of the purge when the family were being held hostage in their own home. Within my narrative, i would like to include something about someone being held hostage. I believe that it would make the narrative more interesting and therefore the audience will be more appealed by the story. The use of this will make the story more original as not many other people have thought of using this idea within their opening sequences.

I have decided that I would like to use various cinematographic elements from a film called 'The Prisoners'. The first angle that I have decided that I would like to use is the high angle. High angles create various feelings for the audience. They allow the audience to understand that the character being shown on the screen is more inferior to the This makes the audience feel fearful due to the fact that the character has a higher profile to them. I also decided that I would like to use POV shots so that the audience can see what is happening from the view of the character. This also allows the audience to feel as though they are that character which makes theme feel as though they are part of the film.

I have taken many inspirations from the film 'Se7en' when looking at the opening credits that they have used. I noticed that during the opening credits there was a green overtone, this created a sense of eeriness and gave the scene a sinister tone overall. The use of the black coloured font can connote to the audience that death will be occurring. As the audience know, the colour black can signify death, therefore hinting to them that something bad will happen. The use of the blurry font can highlight the element of confusion. The confusion can make the audience understand that the victims within the film will be feeling this. The font can also be described as 'scratched'. The use of this can represent struggling, which describes what the victims will be doing. Within the opening credits, I can see that the background is black and the use of the font being white on top of it, can show good versus evil. The can be used to represent the victims against the murderer. The background appears to be red at some points, this can represent blood and anger. This can connote that something bad is going to happen which will show an angry person and this angry person will result in blood being spilled.

My next inspiration is from a film called 'The Strangers' in which i took many inspirations when listening to the variety of sounds that i heard when watching the clip. Within my thriller opening sequence, i would like to use a range of sounds such as non digetic sound. Non digetic sound is when sound or music is added on afterwards, such as in the editing stage. This is heard when the sinister music plays in the background. The audience can hear this sound being played when the record player and the sound begins very quietly and it gradually gets louder as the clip goes on. I would like to include this within my thriller sequence because i think it would create suspense for the audience.

The next sound device that is used within this clip is digetic sound, this is when the music or sound that is played in the scene is considered a natural part of the narrative, it doesn't have to be visible on screen. Again, the record player plays music.

When talking about mise en scene, there are a few elements within this category that have provided me with inspirations such as the iconography that they use. Within the clip that i have decided to analyse, the characters use a torch in order to search for the missing children inside an abandoned cabin in the woods. Within the scene, the man is using his torch as a source of light. This makes the scene sinister for the audience to watch because the torch is the key light and the audience must follow the light to follow the story and to be ready for what will happen. The setting within this scene also inspires me because it shows that the characters are alone and have no protection on them whatsoever. I will make sure to use this within my thriller opening sequence to show that the victims and characters will feel very vulnerable when it comes to the evil characters. This will show them as very weak and will help the audience to connote that those victims will not get very far. The next element is body language, in this scene the body language is used to create surprise and shock. When the man is standing still, the audience can understand that the character is frightened. When the audience see the child on the fridge, they can see that that child is very hunched. This makes them look animal like which again shows that they haven't been treated properly as humans. Another element within mise en scene is clothing. In this scene, i can see that the type of clothing that the men are wearing to enter the cabin is outdoor wear. I believe that they have worn this type of clothing s that they could us them as protection. They may need this clothing for protection as there may be something dangerous inside the cabin. From this, i can also infer that this type of clothing is a shield to them, warning the audience that there may be something in this cabin this is very unapproachable and will put up a fight. Another reason the men may be wearing this clothing could be to show that they walked through the forest to get to the cabin. This could show that something bad is going to happen to the people that have entered the house. I believe that the children inside have not been treated like children but more like animals, and animal handlers wear protective clothing such as thick jackets, just like the man shown in the image above. So, i believe this shows that the children have not been living the way they should be. This makes the audience feel sympathy towards the children due to the fact that they need to be saved rather than kept in this abandoned cabin. This is conventional within the thriller genre because the producers always try to give hints within the story. This allows the audience to think outside the box and make up their own ideas rather than just relying on the story to be told to them. The next element within the mise en scene category is the facial expression that characters are giving. Within this scene, the audience can see that the men are scared of the children that they have just seen climbing on the fridge. They are frightened and bewildered as the children are acting like animals. The men using these facial expressions show us exactly what is happening and how we should feel about it. This inspires me because the facial expressions must make the audience feel the same way otherwise the film will not be as scary as it should be. Within this scene, low key lighting is used. Within this scene, the audience can see that the only lighting is coming from the natural light outside. I believe that this is done to show realism as no colours or effects have been added. This makes it more realistic and the idea of imagining themselves in the situation occurs. Also, as the only light is from the outside, it highlights to the viewers that the men are in the woods. I believe that the use of the low key lighting inside and not outside can also highlight to the audience the setting outside. It shows that the woods are deserted which can help the audience to connote that there is no one outside that can help them. This inspires me because it is dark and sinister which allows the intensity and suspense to be raised, therefore making the scene scarier. The next element that makes up mise en scene is the positioning of characters/objects. Within the scene, i noticed that the male character is standing fully to the front. The audience as well as I can see that the way this man is standing fully facing the front tells us that he is scared about what is to the left of him. This makes the audience fearful of what he has seen. This inspires me as it builds up suspense, and therefore makes the audience excited to see what is going to happen. I want the audience to feel this way when they watch my thriller opening sequence.

Shot reverse shot is used at the beginning of the scene to show the two women having a conversation about what is happening to them. One girl is being injected whilst the other is trying to escape. The editing style demonstrate that both women are tied to hospital beds which subjects that the male character wants to torture them or inflict danger upon them. The use of shot reverse shot makes this part look like a conversation. This is inspiring because it shows the audience that the two women are a team. Slow pace editing is used while one of the girls tries to escape for the man who is trying to hurt her in order to create his dream of a human centipede. This builds up the suspense so us as the audience are waiting to see what happens next and if she can escape in time without the man seeing. He isn't facing her way which can suggest to us that she will escape without being caught. As she escapes, the audience begin to feel excited and this also creates surprise. The timings of shots become quicker as she escapes from the killer. The audience can see her running up the stairs and into one of the rooms. This creates excitement and fear as the audience engage with her as they want her to escape. It picks up the pace of the scene and it allows the viewers to keep up with everything that is happening in the film. This creates suspense as the audience wait to see what happens to her. The times of shots become slower when the killer is coming to find the girl who is trying to escape. The audience see the killer run up the stairs to find the victim who he wants to create an experiment. She runs inside a room but he is not sure which one. However, he eventually realizes which room she is in and knocks on the door but she won't let him in. This creates tension for the audience as they wait to see if the male character gets to her or not. Reaction shots are used throughout this scene of 'Human Centipede' to show how a character is feeling. This is vital because it creates the mood of the audience and so this inspires me to want to use this within my thriller opening sequence because the audience are then showing the correct reactions.

In conclusion, i have many inspirations that will help me to create my thriller opening sequence in the best possible way i can. I will make sure to include all of my inspirations from the categories that i have spoken about above; individual narrative, cinematography, opening credits, sound, mise en scene and editing.