Our Idea Feedback

Rift

Our feedback from the group pitch -

• Need to be safety conscious whilst filming certain scenes.
• When filming in the road - Ensure that the road is either fully closed, or quiet enough to film on. Another thing that the group can do to ensure that the road is safe, is to have someone further up the road to point out when traffic is coming etc.

• Make sure the special effects are adequate to look realistic enough.
• Initially we were prepared to use something such as ketchup to imitate blood, but we discussed the matter and have come to the conclusion that fake blood from a joke store would look more realistic. 

• Practice our shots - for example, our idea of 360 degree panning around the man could be difficult, even using photographs, so we need to practice this.

Psychological Thrillers

The central theme of identity in the psychological thriller genre can often be twisted to give the viewer a very different perception of the protagonist/antagonist’s psyche. Common examples of this include mistaken identity, stolen identity, dual identity, doppelgangers, confused identity and amnesia.

 Directors of psychological thrillers often use the effect of an altered perception of reality, often making the protagonist/antagonist have a different view on what is right or wrong. This may make the viewer cautious as to whether or not to trust the lead character, keeping the atmosphere tense.

The stream of consciousness is a device used in psychological thrillers to give an insight into the psyche of a particular character’s, usually the main protagonist.

Directors can often use the unreliable status of a narrator or central character to keep the viewer on edge throughout the performance. For instance, if the character is a convict or suspicious in any way; their view may be unreliable.

Imagery is one of the easiest devices to use in cinematography to convey the psychological thriller genre. Eyes are a frequent motif.

Technical devices such as flashbacks and repetitions in editing are common within psychological thrillers. 

DETAILED PLAN OF OUR THRILLER OPENING SCENE

Rift

Subgenre: pyschological thriller

Overall Idea: A normal business man is walking to work, and in his mind has a horrifying vision of a fatal crash. Thinking it was his imagination playing tricks on him, he forgets about it, yet a few weeks later he reads an article on the exact crash he saw in his mind.

Characters:  the man is the only character in the opening

Locations: the man's kitchen, street

Costumes: man: black business suit (representing his lifestyle)

Lighting: (in the house): bright, sharp, muted colours from lamps
(in the street): natural light, representing normality of the day

Plot

The start of the opening shows the date, and sees a man, formally dressed, walking down a busy street, as if on the way to work. From here we will have a mixture of camera angles to give an artistic view of the character, some of these shots will include, a camera following the man jerkily in a handheld form, shots looking over his shoulder and looking on at him as he walks past. We will also include some shots from the man's perspective as he looks around at the environment. From this perspective we will also include some shots of close up objects. The shots will also establish the scene, such as the street name. Whilst the scene is unfolding, we will have a soundtrack gradually picking up in volume and intensity in a cresendo style. The climax of the scene will see the camera do a fast 360 degree spin around the man, whilst moving closer to his eye and we may use photo stills for this, as it will be easier. We will need to do test shots of both these ideas. Once the camera reaches the character's eye, we will insert a rapid selection of close-up images of an accident - things such as a limp arm in the road, shattered glass, a dented car. The scene will culminate in a fully shock white screen where the black word: "Rift" will fade in slowly, to the peak volume of the music; which will fully stop and go silent.

The opening of the second scene will start with a date, a few weeks after the man sees the crash and will only use diegetic sounds (such as the spoon clinking in the man's mug, the sound of butter spreading on toast, newspaper rustling etc). The visuals of the scene involve the audience seeing a man reading his newspaper in his kitchen in the morning. We have a variety of shots and sounds emphasising his morning routine, such as the sound of his spoon against his cup. All these sounds will build the suspense. The camera shots will show the article of the crash - the same one the man sees, which is shown with the name of the street etc.


- Another idea is that a voiceover could be used as the photos start to show the protagonist's confusion. This is using the psychological thriller convention of a stream of consciousness - and maybe an unreliable narrative.

Ideas for our thriller opening

Idea One.

• Centered around a crime - murder (but the audience don't know that at first)
• Jerky handheld camera movement representing the victim's point of view, so the audience can only see suggestive moments such as the victim's eyes (thriller motif)
• Black & white, with dark red lighting - representing danger + anger

The scene revolves around a murder that takes place however the audience doesn't know about it. The location is unknown to the audience as the camerawork is all close ups and quick cuts, which adds to the suspense of the opening and making it more intriguing to the audience. The characters are anonymous. The shots will switch between the characters and the titles. 

Idea Two.

• Crime Thriller

The opening scene is the murder of the victim in the film, the rest of the film will be finding the murderer. The opening scene will show the victim walking down an alley naturally, with odd camera shots from high and low angles, showing the victim walking, from the point of view of the antagonist. The audience do not actually see the murder but it is suggested as the shot blurs and the pace of the cuts increase, building the suspense.

Idea Three.

There are clips of a regular man on his way to work, dressed formally. We will have multiple clips of both him walking towards the camera and of the camera following him both at a distance and over his shoulder as he is walking, as if it's someone watching him. Then, all of a sudden, the man must freeze and have a rapid series of 360 degree's stills, transitioning into rapid stills of a car accident, speeding up throughout to the cresendo of the music - ending in a white out. The scene then resumes a number of days later in the man's home, where he is seen to be eating breakfast. The man then grabs a nearby newspaper to see an article of an accident involving someone the man knows.

Student Thriller Openings Analysis

P2-37 Delirium Tremens

The fact the opening is in black and white adds to the gloomy atmosphere of the film, as does the slow music and long shots, which uses the thriller convention of the microelements building suspense. The panning at the beginning establishes the location of the film clip. The urban environment adds a sense of mystery to the clip and begins to make the viewer wonder what the rest of the clip will ensue. Towards the end of the scene, we have a trunk shot showing the protagonist staring in horror at the open boot, which shows the protagonist may be 'in peril' before a resolution, another thriller convention.

Surface

This opening is very professional, with parallel editing showing fire and a struggling scene. This could imply the film centres around a crime, a thriller convention, or an act of violence. The drama is in black and white, like Delirium Tremens, but the shots of the fire are bright red on a black background, both gloomy colours, suggesting impending doom. The close ups show a girl struggling, yet the audience cannot tell what she is struggling against - an unknown figure, potentially psychological. In the end of the opening, the struggle gains colour, and the fast cuts and short shots of editing highlight her ongoing struggle.

Crime Thriller Conventions

-Variety of characters, gangs or duo's of criminals, dopey sidekick (normally eccentric)
- Central topics often include a crime or number of crimes e.g murder, kidnap, robbery
- Tragedy motivates someone to do something but the line between right and wrong is blurred
- Narrative follows the planning and execution of crimes, not always successful
- Protagonist, outsider often have characteristics of antagonist

Action Thriller Conventions in Bourne Identity

- Lots of fast paced action from the start, which is shown in Bourne Identity as the fishermen save Jason from the water at the start.
- The protagonist is a traditional action hero, though he is sometimes framed or mistaken for someone else, or is confused with his identity, which happens to Jason in Bourne Identity. He has no idea of his identity and his skills, which adds to the suspense of the film.
- The flaws of the protagonist are unlikely to be physical - they are most likely emotional/mental, such as Jason's problem with his identity. This makes the protagonist more relatable.
- High value motive (money, secrets) also adds to the suspense of the film.
- Contropuntal sound and non diegetic sound - the contrast between the music and the action is vital to enhance the action. Contropuntal sound is not in Bourne Identity yet the fast paced, upbeat music adds to the pace of the fights.
- Manipulation - possibly of government or people adds to the audience's anticipation
- An action involves quite a lot of violence, weapons, lots of violence is involved in Bourne Identity as the protagonist is involved in a lot of fights, although we don't find out why in the opening.
- Brute force as a way out of difficult situations for the protagonist and Jason Bourne is a perfect example of this - to get away from the bank he fights with the guards.
- More blood than your average thriller, but not necessarily from violence - the beginning of Bourne Identity involves a man removing bullets from Jason Bourne's back

Memento Review, directed by Christopher Nolan, 2000

The film Memento uses a main thriller convention by being centered around a crime. The crime is introduced to the viewer right at the start with the polaroid image of the dead man.

As soon as the music starts the audience already feel the suspense. The long notes of the strings are slow with a sense of sadness which subtly builds up suspense.
Another psychological thriller convention used is the unreliable narrator. The voiceover used as a stream of consciousness gives the viewer an insight into the psyche of the protagonist. The protagonist is talking to himself in third person and seems confused and unstable. This ambiguity highlights his unpredictability and the use of the voiceover, camerawork and music let the audience empathise with the protagonist.
The protagonists perception of reality is unstable and the sense of a flashback adds to this and confuses the audiences sense of time. The reversal of time is not immediately understandable which disrupts the viewers sense of continuity.
The close-up on the protagonist's eyes is another psychological thriller convention which links to thriller imagery. Eyes are a frequent motif in psychological thrillers and this is no exception. The rapid eye movement and blinking adds to his sense of instability.

Another micro element used to highlight the protagonist's instability is the mise-en-scene. When we see the hand holding the polaroid, we see a small glimpse of the tattoo, which could imply the protagonist's dangerousness.

Thriller Opening Review

Rear Window
Director: Alfred Hitchcock

In 'Rear Window' the plot is centered around a crime - the murder of Jeffries' neighbour, a common thriller convention, which sets the scene for the rest of the film. The protagonist does have an 'Achilles Heel', a broken leg, but in this opening we do not see the antagonist exploit this weakness. However this weakness could imply future incidents for the protagonist. The opening of this thriller does not give any clue of the genre, it seems an ordinary situation. This is another thriller convention Hitchcock used - the way the narrative is an ordinary situation where unusual events happen. This convention makes the extraordinary events even more surprising when they do happen.

As the audience, you feel as though you are in the position of voyeur - we are watching Jeffries' neighbours' lives with him which we feel we shouldn't.  This is another thriller convention Hitchcock has used to make the audience feel more involved in the film.
The main characters are established in the opening sequence. The whole setting is also established as the camera pans around the apartments.

Preliminary Task - Joe, Lucy, Mark, Alannah

- establishing shot
- close-up shot
- match on shot
- reaction shot
- long shot
- filming a conversation
- the 180 degree rule
- editing the conversation