AS Evaluation Question 7

7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

The purpose of the preliminary task was to show my understanding of cinematography and to get some experience with using the camera and tripod. In this short clip, I had to demonstrate several different camera angles whilst using dialogue. The cinematography my group tried to incorporate were; high angle, zooming in, over the shoulder, close up, tracking. When creating the preliminary task, I learnt how to use a camera and tripod, as well as executing the different camera angles, listed above. The preliminary task assisted me when planning and creating my own thriller film as it told me what not to do.
 Firstly, we took too long filming a short amount of footage, and so we did not have enough time to edit the footage in class. Consequently, we had to come back in our free time to edit the footage. This was helpful as it told me that we needed to ensure we plan everything carefully and in detail in order to film and edit within the deadline. We did in fact manage to complete our final product before the deadline and the footage was all filmed efficiently. It also gave us some experience as to using the camera and using the editing software and so when we made out thriller clip, it was not foreign to us and we picked up and familiarised ourselves with it quickly and easily. 
We gained an understanding of the types of cinematography that worked well and what did not; such as the tracking was good therefore we ended up including it in our thriller clip. From this task, I also learnt that we should ensure we plan what edits we want to use and why, instead of guessing and making it up at the editing stage to help base the edits around the footage so that it flows. We did this with the use of our storyboard which guided us through and assisted us when it came down to both the filming and the editing.

AS Evaluation Question 6

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AS Evaluation Question 5

5) How did you attract/address your audience?

Primary research was essential to my group production as it gave me different view points of thrillers and what to expect from the public, knowledge of film certification and I was able to collect ideas and compare other thriller films to create mine at a good quality. I had many research stages that assisted me with producing our opening sequence including research into age certificates; this research gave me a deep understanding into why films are classified to protect the public from content that is unsuitable for their age group, and to stop children from seeing explicit images that may harm them. From this, my group and I decided to rate our thriller clip a 15 as the idea of the girl being taken seems quite violent, but you would not actually see this take place, and so it is simply and idea. Another source of research that was carried out to assist us was the narrative theory; here we were able to comprehend Vladimir Propp, Tzvetan Todorov and Aristotle’s Theory and relate them to our narrative. When comparing my narrative to the 3 theories, the one that I found suits it best is Aristotle’s theory that any film should be made using themes. I took inspiration from this theory by emphasizing the dramatic question raised through the use of enigma throughout. 

One of the main sources of research carried out was a questionnaire, where my group asked our target audience of around 15+, various questions as to what they thought should be included in a thriller film. We asked 40 people the questions on the questionnaire, the majority of those being from our target audience age range. We then thought the best way to present our findings would be by using pie charts as this is a clear way of showing the data we have collected. When creating the questionnaire we wanted to ask a variety of open and closed questions to make our results more reliable. An open question is one that cannot be answered with a simple yes or no answer, and so forces the person to give a more detailed answer. A closed question is simply where you answer with one word such as yes, no or maybe. By having the ‘other’ option mixed with the other available options, we created an open question, giving the audience the opportunity to say what they thought if they wished to. What I realized by the open questions not being answered was that people don’t like to decide or give their opinion as to what they want to see. I therefore concluded from this that viewers of the thriller genre like to be surprised by what they are watching; it doesn’t necessarily matter what the narrative is about, as long as the audience feel something from the suspense and tension created. Collecting this data was beneficial as it gave me and my group guidance with choosing what aspects such as conventions to use in our opening clip. It helped us with planning as it told us how important each aspect is and the amount of detail we need to go in if we wanted our clip to be effective. 

AS Evaluation Question 4

4) Who would be the audience for your media product?

A target audience is important to the success or failure of a film, because if the film does not contain representations that interest the ‘targeted’ audience then the film would gain no money nor attention. Target audiences can be broken down into different groups, this is called audience segmentation. You can segment audiences by age, race, gender, social class, how much education they have, where they live, what sort of interests they have or the subculture they identify with. The target audience of my opening sequence was people aged 15+ of a mixed gender who are interested in thriller films. Thrillers are typically certificated a 15 or an 18 due to the content being unsuitable and disturbing for children or teenagers under those ages therefore we decided on a 15. My thriller film appeals to an audience as our narrative is unique, unlike cliché thriller/horror films where you know what to expect. My narrative also includes an unexpected twist and cliffhanger which would catch the attention of the audience and draw them into the film more. The audience must be able to identify with the characters and settings in a film by seeing something of themselves in them – or sometimes by wishing, perhaps subconsciously, to be like them. The relationship between the characters are siblings, most people have siblings therefore the audience are able to relate to the characters relationship in my sequence and can familiarize themselves in the situation. The soundtrack I included within the film is an intense piano, piano is a typical sound used in thrillers as the pace changes and tone can make a big impact. By using a piano soundtrack I intended to make the audience feel comfortable, by giving a promise of satisfaction, by establishing tone and style that are familiar to them. The mise-en-scene of my film is also intended for the audience to relate or connect to; the costumes are casual everyday clothing which adds a sense of realism. The facial expressions and body language of the little girl are dull, sad and lonely making the audience to build a relationship with her, connect with her and empathize for her. Also, the positioning of the little girl is done in a way to draw the audiences attention to her as when walking through the forest, the little girl is central and so is dominant in the picture, however, she looks misplaced as though she does not belong or meant to be in the forest making the audience worry for her. I also appealed to the audience through the camera shots, we used many close-ups of the little girl enabling the audience to connect to her emotionally as they are able to see the emotion on her face. POV shots we included also give the chance for the audience to put themselves inside the film and current situation allowing them to attach themselves to the film.

AS Evaluation Question 2

2) How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In my group narrative’s for my opening sequence, I included 3 main characters, but two of them could be played by the same person. One being the little sister, Annie, aged 10 who is mixed race. Annie is the little sister of the next character Ayesha. They are very close which is shown through the flashbacks in the clip. Her purpose to the narrative is the victim. She is portrayed as being innocent through her body language and facial expressions making her look sad and lonely. This character appeals to the audience because of the way she is portrayed. She looks lonely and sad which will make the audience believe she is innocent and so may be the victim. This is made clear through the use of high angled shots when portraying the little girl. They will therefore sympathize with her, which will mean they are emotionally attached to her throughout the clip. By presenting her in everyday, young clothes such as the pink dress and the pink scarf, it shows her youth, meaning anyone who is a parent or has young friends etc will be able to relate to the little girl, making our thriller seem more realistic. In thrillers, the victim is stereotypically always a female, and so by using a female in my thriller, makes it clearer to the audience that she is the victim. Females are stereotypically used as they are generally the weaker sex and come across more vulnerable than men and vulnerability in a victim leaves the audience feeling on edge and creates empathy.

Another main character in my film is the older sister Ayesha, 16 years old, female. Her purpose to the narrative is to help confuse the audience. They will begin liking her as she is close to her little sister, but as the narrative develops and the audience discovers that she may be the killer, the viewers may feel a sense of hatred or anger towards her due to the betrayal towards her sister. She is used to help create and enigma which is conventional to thrillers as it leaves the audience unsure of what has happened and so they question it and continue to watch to see what happens. Teenagers of a similar age will be able to relate to this character and how she may feel, such as if they have a younger sister then they too may have experiences of the arguments siblings share. They may also sympathize with her when we see her place the rose down as viewers will never want to lose their little sister, no matter how much they argue, and so will connect very easily with the character.

The final character included is the killer who is either unknown, or the same character, Ayesha. The age, gender and race of the killer is unknown but with the possibility of it being Ayesha. If it is not the older sister then the audience are unaware know who he/she is as their identity is kept hidden. This creates an enigma which is very conventional to the thriller genre as it makes them eager to know who the killer is which keeps them engaged with the clip. The purpose to the narrative the killer has is to make the audience feel uncomfortable and should be responsible for creating all of the bad emotions the audience feel. This creates shock and surprise when we find out that the killer could be the older sister. The views should struggle to accept this as they thought they were two different people, which creates a sense of confusion. 

The victim - Little girl - Yasmin/Annie

The killer (Hidden identity-just showing gloves or arms)

The older sister - Ayesha - Could possibly be the killer

AS Evaluation Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Thriller films rely on tension, suspense, fear, excitement, danger and high levels of anticipation to captivate an audience and provide a thrilling, realistic, climaxed storyline that keeps the audience alert and anxious throughout. As a general rule, all thriller films are based around the generic conventions regarding lighting, camera angles, locations, props, characters and possibly a femme fatale.

 The lighting is usually noir (black on white) /ambient /chiaroscuro. Most dangerous scenes take place at night because the bewildered nighttime and dark areas increase the feeling of danger and suspense (i.e. in Thelma and Louise and Jackie Brown). On the other hand, some films such as Heavenly Creatures/Essex Boys, the murder or violent scenes happen in broad daylight instead. This can create shock, surprise and suspense which is typical of thrillers as in the film the attack can seem unsuspected because people usually feel safer in daylight. An example of this is in the film Jackie Brown, when a gangster unexpectedly shoots the blonde female victim in the middle of the car park in broad daylight in such a casual manner, which can leave a startling effect on the audience. 
My opening scene is mainly low-key lighting throughout to create a dark shady atmosphere. However, my flashback frames are in daylight and high-key lighting which likewise to the film ‘Jackie Brown’ makes a murder more shocking as daytime has a more positive feel therefore making it unexpected that a murder is going to take place. For example, my clip includes a flashback frame of the two sisters happily playing around a tree in bright daylight, seeing this, the audience would feel relaxed at the happy sight, however this then fades into a dark low-key frame of the little girl walking in the forest making the viewers moods instantly change as the lighting reflects how they would be feeling. (See examples below)

The cinematography used in thriller films can include longs shots to establish the environment the scene it takes place in. Sometimes the director uses certain camera angles to allow the audience to gain an understanding of the film. Close-ups are therefore used so the audience can concentrate and possibly empathise with the character. My thriller clip has a long shot in the first frame showing the little girls surroundings and her full body which shows her costume. I dressed the little girl in a pink dress to show her innocence and how young she is, allowing the audience to sympathise with her. I wanted the audience to make themselves aware of the environment so they are attentive to the little girl being completely alone in the presence of the killer. Point of view shots are also often used in thriller films as it allows the audience to be put into the characters shoes and study the scene from the characters viewpoint. which allows them to feel closer to the character. An example of a POV shot is in the film ‘Orphan’ when the audience is put into the perspective of the killer looking down at the dead body of a nun the killer had just murdered. I took this shot as an inspiration for my thriller clip and included a POV shot of the little girl looking down on her dead body in the final frame to place the audience into the characters situation making it more of a shocking sight. 


(add screenshot from film orphan)

The generic thriller locations are usually enclosed areas which add a sense of claustrophobia or isolation with an inevitable chance of escape for the victim in panic situations. A commonly used location in thriller films are car parks (Essex Boys/ Thelma and Louise). Other locations used in thriller films are usually plain, bewildered locations (In ‘Jackie Brown’ a gangster gets shot in the boot of a car situated in the middle of nowhere). In Essex Boys, for example, the beaten up character is helplessly left to rot in the mud in the middle of nowhere, adding terror as it is inevitable that anyone will be around to help him. Forests are also frequently used in thriller films as they are isolated and hard to escape in, such as in the film ‘Kiss The Girls’ where the female victim is running from her killer surrounded by nothing but trees. My thriller clip was located in a forest; I took inspiration from the film ‘Kiss the Girls’ as we found it very tense knowing there is nobody but the victim and the killer in the forest and there being nowhere for the victim to escape to or hide. By locating my thriller in a forest my young female victim appears even more vulnerable as she is alone in an isolated forest amongst a killer. My thriller is also situated underwater, which was inspired from the successful thriller film ‘Orphan’. Being underwater is also an enclosed space with neither the killer nor victim being able to breathe creating tension for the audience as they hope the killer dies instead. 

(screenshot of forest)
(screenshot kiss the girls film)

The iconography in thrillers are usually weapons. Many main characters in a thriller own a gun or knife as it signifies that someone is going to get killed or is in danger. If they do not own a typical weapon, items tend to be used which are generally associated with the character and tell the audience something about them or links it to them. For example, in the film ‘Kiss the Girls’ the killer is holding a syringe this tells the audience that he isn’t mentally stable and he is obsessive by wanting to drug the victim in order to have full control over her instead of instantly killing her.  In my thriller opening sequence, my iconography was a scarf. Typically the main item in thrillers are intended to harm someone, however the scarf in our clip is used to link the murder to the little girl allowing the audience to imply that it is the little girl who dies. Murder weapons are usually easily accessible rose knife scarf

Generically thrillers mostly focus on illegal, dangerous or “wrong” behaviour, usually involving characters that are gangsters, part of the mafia, spies, detectives or any kind of murderers. Sometimes, important key characters are complete enigmas, whom the audience doesn’t find out much information about. Some of these enigmas get cleared up at the end of the film, but sometimes the character stays mysterious and one never finds out their actual identity. This is the case in my thriller, the identity of the killer is hidden and stays that way until the end of the opening sequence but with indications to whom the killer could be (the older sister). An example of a thriller with an unknown killer is ‘Scream’ where there is a masked murderer. A hidden identity on the murderer is conventional to the thriller genre as the audience have the fear of the unknown because they don’t know what the killer is capable of and are unaware of the mindset as the character is anonymous and mysterious, all they know of is that they want to kill. My opening sequence is a physiological thriller and I added a twist, there being a possibility that the killer could be the victims sister, and that the little girl, the main character, walking through the forest is in fact dead. We took our inspiration of this from the successful physiological thriller ‘The Sixth Sense’ where the ending is Bruce Willis, the main character, finding out he is actually dead when throughout the film he appeared to be alive. Overall my opening sequence is conventional to the thriller genre as it includes the generic aspects that are typically used in thriller films. The title of my thriller is also conventional as ‘Nostalgia’ refers to longing of the past, this enables an emotional and relatable connection with the audience making them feel more on edge. Furthermore ‘Nostalgia’ is one word which is straight to the point, this is used in many thriller films such as ‘Orphan’, ‘Disturbia’ ‘Scream’ all of which are successful.

AS Evaluation Intoduction

My group included myself, Deanna Mathers and Lilian Amaning. The roles in production consist of the director, actors, directors of photography (cameramen), sound technicians, screenplay writer, MES coordinators and the editors. I was designated the role of producer, the Mise-en-scene coordinator and an actor. I was responsible for planning the costumes for myself and my sister suitable for our thriller theme and narrative. I worked alongside Lilian, the director to assist Deanna with deciding on shots we may be unsure of whilst filming. From being given these roles, I learnt how to retain the little time we had to film by cooperating with the other group members and guiding one another with the roles we found difficult to fulfill in order to complete our clip efficiently. I also learnt when editing our clip as I familiarized myself with the Final Cut Pro X software.

 I feel that I have made a successful thriller film as it includes a lot of enigma which is conventional to the thriller genre. There is great mystery throughout the clip due to the killer having a hidden identity but also the possibility of the killer being the older sister of the victim. My thriller also includes a chase scene. Chase scenes are typically between a female victim and the murderer, which is the case in my sequence. During the chase scene I included a non-diagetic sound of a heartbeat which represents the heart of the victim but also reflects the heartbeat of the audience, connecting them to her which is conventional to the thriller genre as it builds up tension and suspense leaving the audience feeling anxious or scared like the victim would be feeling. Another aspect which I felt made our thriller successful was the use of iconography. The iconography of the scarf gave the audience something to focus on as it was associated with the victim, this allowed them to connect with the victim as well as figuring out what is going to happen to her. Another use of iconography in my clip was the visual image of woods. Woods are locations often used for thrillers. They make the audience seem lost and they are isolated, which created a sense of vulnerability and it seems inevitable that the victim will ever find any help.