Thriller Evaluation

Thriller Evaluation

Our thriller project began with an introduction to forms and conventions of thriller films. Helping us to understand it better, we then compared the differences with a similar genre, horror. We learnt that thriller films are based on every-day circumstances and are created with the aim of attracting their audiences while building a tense sensation that makes them want to carry on watching. This tense sensation classically allows the audience to be aware of the negative scheme in the film, also making them feel that they know something that the other characters don’t know. If used well, this technique can make the audience focus on a current situation while a surprise scenario is unexpectedly introduced, grabbing deeper onto the attention of the viewer. Thriller films usually contain a set of characters which act against each other to form an interesting plot e.g. hero and villain.

On the other hand, horror films follow storylines that lead to the unexpected. They usually contain typical conventions such as ‘the last girl standing’ where at the end of the film, the only character left alive is a female. Horror films objectivise on making the audience feel afraid and excited where as thriller films focus on providing a thrill.

When it came to pitching an idea for our project, we kept in my mind what we had learnt about forms and conventions and how real-thriller openings were effective with different shot types. As we considered different ideas, we thought of how we could twist a normal, every-day situation to convert it into an effective thriller opening. We, as a group, decided on story that contained mystery and suspense. This is reflected in our opening 20 seconds were anonymous feet are tracked walking up some stairs, producing a feeling of curiosity within the audience.

I feel that my participation in the group was influenced and encouraged by the variety of preliminary tasks I completed before commencing the project. Beginning the whole process with learning about shot types and angles, helped me understand how things can be done to produce an effective outcome. Watching a selection of famous thriller openings also reinforced the importance of shot types. Steadily moving on to practice filming was an appropriate approach to train my new skills. Between my 1st and 2nd filming practices, I learnt about shooting from certain distances (180º rule) and about different lighting scenarios. What you see as your filming isn’t always what you get on tape. We experienced this in one of our practices where the lighting seemed to be on our side as we filmed. However, when we viewed it on the computer before editing, we realised that the film was darker than we originally thought. Learning from our mistakes, we improved upon the 2nd filming practice where we purposely selected a dark atmosphere to hide a serious conversation between 2 associates.

I also learnt the importance of storyboarding after we consistently changed and updated our ideas and shot types. My group didn’t believe storyboards would affect our filming but we soon realised that we couldn’t remember certain shots and so had to re-create the ones we hadn’t memorized. This wasted valuable time and provoked our ideas to change as we filmed.

Editing our footage proved to be challenging but doable. Once we had finished filming, we transferred our recordings on to the MAC on Final Cut Pro, using a technique known as ‘logging and capturing’. This procedure basically allowed us to select the wanted scenes and prepare them to be linked. When the ‘logging and capturing’ was finished, we began to connect the clips together in a way that made them look continuous. I think that this task helped us the most when it came to editing our final film as joining the scenes together with a smooth, constant flow, adds professionalism.

In my opinion, an appropriate audience for my thriller film would be young, independent people who do not expect the unexpected, roughly from the age of 16 onwards and both genders. Viewing public could include students, dropouts or even working individuals, after all, the film revolves around a normal, every-day situation. This important convention automatically makes the film mainstream as the world lives in ordinary conditions, all the time, making the films spectators global. Another necessity of the audience may be the characteristics of interest and comprehension. The short opening may perhaps fall into the sub-genre of a psychological thriller, where the public may have to be able to understand what is happening, without directly being told the story. Typical audience members of the film may be:

‘22 year old Aaron Walsh from London, very few qualifications, permanent job as an electrician, loves to play football and go to the pub, shops in H&M and watches a lot of TV. Particularly enjoys thriller programmes.’

’17 year old Janita Kahn from London, originally from India, full time college student, part time job at Waitrose, enjoys dancing and shopping for well-known brands. Watches little TV but is keen on watching new, interesting films at the cinema.’

Advertising our film may be hassle free as the generation of our target audience is extremely internet orientated. Using viral marketing, we could promote our film on popular websites, particularly social networking sites where audiences may be attracted by trailers or images. This method also benefits our budget as it is free and dependant on these websites which currently, are very fashionable. Another way may also be to post trailers on YouTube, where videos can be viewed through attractive links or even by mistake. If we make our trailers eye-catching enough, we could persuade the public into wanting to watch the whole film.

Using recognized actors may be a further way of attracting our target audience. If artists are identified for performing well in previous films, they may cause the centre of attention for even unexpectedly wider audiences. Some people see certain stars as role models and/or idols so they may be encouraged to watch the film, already expecting positive performances.
Another way of advertising could be through TV adverts. If we aim to show our trailers on the more known channels like BBC outlets, the possibility of our target audience catching a glimpse increases. This is because already a variety of appealing programmes, also partly aimed at our target audience, are broadcasted on these channels, making them out-standing for public notice.

Our media product represents a particular social group which is of those who live traditional lives. The short opening introduces characters who can be associated with the viewing public, as they are shown undertaking usual routines. The audience and characters are also comparable in age, gender and class. This adds the effect of making the viewers realise that they could find themselves in a similar position when they least imagine. E.g. the male character is revealed performing his job, which is implied as a natural, daily job. He does not expect that he will meet and work in the house of a young lady who is supposedly meant to have died a couple years ago.

A possible media institution that may distribute our media film to begin with could be a small independent UK release association. A motive for this is to see how the proposed target audience will react. If the response is better than expected, then a big Hollywood blockbuster organization that shares movies worldwide may be the next step. If the film has a major hit in the UK, then it stands a chance of becoming a celebrated achievement. It also includes the fact that the film can relate to a majority of ordinary people internationally, even outside the intended UK target audience. Possible actions after releasing the film to the world could include DVD release. Internet publicity could possibly jeopardise the films success as many people may rather watch a new film for free, than pay. Either way, internet posting will assist in some sort of promotion.

Making use of the different technologies to create our thriller opening has taught me a lot about film manufacturing. If constructing 3 minutes of video took my group as long as it did, I can imagine the dedication and patience it must take to produce an entire film. Starting with the practical tasks of filming and editing, I experienced a stressing but beneficial understanding. Taking hold of the camera and knowing how to handle it was challenging at first, but once you focus on a shot you want to record, there’s nothing really stopping it from being faultless. The tri-pod instrument was a true essential as it helped to perfect certain shots that were difficult to shoot by free-hand.

Editing the footage on Final Cut Pro confirmed to be tricky but very exciting. Initially, I had no knowledge of how to utilize this type of software. However, after a straight-forward tutorial, I distinguished the main features needed to edit. During the period of the preliminary editing practises, my familiarity with the program developed, and so did my end products. I felt that I stood out in my group as the perfectionist.

While undertaking the above tasks, we were asked to access the internet to individually ‘blog’ each activity that we performed in the class. Blogging proved to be useful as reminders on what we previously did in class, to help plan and improve current and future projects. As we finished our main thriller assignment, we were able to post it onto our blog page where it could be viewed by almost anyone. Final pieces were also updated onto a website known as Vimeo. Releasing our film openings onto the internet broadened the potential audience as people all over the world may be able to access it. This in itself is a form of viral marketing.

Overall, I feel that our group created a potentially successful opening to a thriller film. I feel this because our opening follows the main conventions of a thriller which is to be based on a normal circumstance, where a thrilling sensation is produced by revealing slight clues to what is happening, without completely giving the story away thus making the audience want to find out what happens next. Comparing our opening with a well-known one such as Arlington Road, I can relate the worms’ eye view tracking shot of the walking feet. Like in our opening, this produces a mysterious wonder within the audience, making them question about what is happening and who they are following. Tracking the feet directly, limits the viewers choice to see the surrounding scene so this feeling is slightly unavoidable. Furthermore, the audience feel eager to continue watching, making the first couple of minutes effective as they are particularly necessary to grab the viewers concentration, affecting the rest of the films viewing attentiveness.