Anything missing???

If there is anything missing please tell me mrs in the comments, I think ive got everything but I had problems reading your list and you may have missed something off it, I will keep checking back until our lesson on Wednesday to see if you have put any comments. Thanks for your help with both pieces.

Audience response to our opening (draft & final)

The overall rewsponse was good, everyone liked the topic area (webcams). They also liked it because it was different; no dialogue or music, they all thought that it made the audience concentrate more on what they were shown than what they could hear. They liked the fact it ended on a cliff hanger and that the audience were told very little about the characters and wht happened to Tom's character. After seeing the first draft some thought some of the scenes were too lng, mainly the mid shots of Sam so we cut those down. Also the printer shots were too long and this affected the tension and suspense by slowing it down, making the audience drift away a little. We rectified this and when they watched the final version they all thought so too.

Storyboards

Audience research into the thriller genre

I asked 10 people aged 16-18 firstly wnat they thought of film in general and then about what they like and what they expect from the thriller genre of films. I asked this age group as they are part of the age range that thrillers target, which I knew already. I also divided up equally for men and women, so I asked 5 of each. I knew a lot about the thriller genre already, through personal taste and what we had done in class so I based my questions on what the audience like in the genre, not what you expect in the genre as I had a very good idea about that aspect already.

1)How often do you watch a film?

• 0/1 times a month - 0
• 2 times a month - 1 female
• 3 times a month - 1 male
• 4 times a month - 2 male 2 female
• 5 times a month - 2 male 2 female
• 6+ times a month - 0

2)How often do you watch a thriller film?

• 0 times a year - 0
• 1-3 times a year - 1 male 1 female
• 4-6 times a year - 2 male 3 female
• 7-9 times a year - 1 male 1 female
• 10-12 times a year - 1 male
• 12+ times a year - 0

3)what sub genres of thriller do you like? (you can choose as many as you like and remember many films fall under more than 1 category)

• action - 5 male 1 female
• romantic - 4 female
• conspiracy - 4 male 2 female
• crime - 5 male 1 female
• disaster - 5 male 4 female
• dramatical - 1 male 5 female
• psychological - 4 male 5 female
• science fiction - 5 male 2 female
• supernatural - 5 male 1 female
• spy - 5 male 2 female

4)What do you like in a thriller in terms of story

• complex - 3 male 5 female
• twists - 4 male 4 female
• confusion - 1 male 1 female
• suspense - 5 male 5 female
• mystery - 3 male 4 female
• danger - 5 male 3 female
• to be active/ have to think - 3 male 5 female
• hero vs villain - 5 male 3 female
• cliffhanger - 1 male 3 female

5) what do you expect from a Thriller opening

• intro to characters - 4 male 2 female
• creation of mystery - 3 male 5 female
• establishment of atmosphere - 3 male 3 female

Those were my questions. The answers the two genders gave me link in with what sort of thrillers they like. So take intro to characters, men expect that more because they like action thrillers more and the story is based around the hero.

Lets start at, you've guessed it, the start.

Our narrative and story has stayed roughly the same since the idea was first brainstormed. Obviously some things have been changed and redesigned along the way and we've added bits and taken bits out. For example we added in the flashback to give the audience better understanding about whats happening in the present timing. This was influenced by the flashback in the opening of Casino Royale.

Once we planned it we then started storyboarding it. We took time over this and did 2 versions. I think we were the last group in our class to finish it but it was worth it.

We then started filming and the problems kept on coming. We first had technology problems with basically everything we needed (pc, internet, printer) and during 1 of the filming sessions the camera ran out of battery after only just over 30mins and we were supplied with the wrong charger. But its now all aparrently done.

The search for sounds went well and I found many useful sounds for the enhanced diagetic theme we wanted.

Idea Development

We made the choice to base our film on webcams, which was 1 of our 3 ideas. At that stage that was all we made the decision on because we thought it would be diferent and would attract the thriller target audience (15 - early 20 yr olds). Oviously a lot of developing went on between then and filming. I came up with and subsequently made the 'top secret document' which is slightly cliched I admit but we did put a modern twist on it, as a everyday civilian has it and also it is sent digitally via MSN. As a group we also decided that the character who sends it (Tom) should get taken away and that the audience should know very little about what has happened and the background of what has happened. The rest of the film would address these, going into the past about waht had happened up to the point of the present, which they are shown in the opening and then what happens to the characters in the present throughout the story.

First lesson brainstorming session

In the first lesson we did come up with several ideas and before the end of the lesson we decided on the idea based around webcams, which we then developed in the following lessons. Heres the other ideas we had:

• basing a film in an office/bank setting - someone breaking in, taking something from the office/bank then escaping - we thought this was a good idea, but it would have been complex to film for various reasons; actually having the location available and then permission to film, also actors (you would have to use adults for a start)
• basing it around a police detective - we didn't know what could happen to the character, we did't want anything too cliched and also we had similar problems to above with it

Costumes, Props & Locations

The costumes are just typical of what teenagers wear, it is one of the advantages of targeting a teenager audience because we are and our actors are teenagers. In the film it is just Sam and Tom's typical everyday clothing, which creates realism, if they were wearing suits or really expensive clothing it would not seem right.

The props are very much to do with technology. In the film we obviously needed 2 webcams and 2 computers (with the usual bits & bobs; keyboard, mouse, screen), these are the main props used. However there is also another prop used. I may add that it was a stroke of genius to do so. The other prop it is the drink (which at 1 point Sam gets up to get) and we see him drink from several times in the opening. This adds a whole new element of realism and shows that we really thought about realism, which is very important in the thriller genre. I mean the number of times I sit on MSN with a cup of tea in my hand, I even know people who take this 1 step further and eat their dinner while on MSN.

We originally planned to have 2 locations. These were Sam's bedroom and Tom's bedroom. We also originally planned to actually film top with the camera also but decided against this. In the actual video the 2 characters are in different locations, but Tom is actually only in the next room from Sam, who is in the spare bedroom in his house and Tom is in Sam's bedroom. Going back to a point I mentioned earlier we actually didn't film Tom in the end, we were going to film him like we film Sam; as though our camera was the webcam. But after seeing Tom through the webcam on Sam's computer we thought it looked really good so we decided to carry that on through the whole opening. So we actually only film from 1 location. We decided to do this with Tom as the quality of the webcam image was good, but not as good as an actual video camera and because of this it adds to the concealment and mystery of when Tom gets taken away.

target audience

Why do films target specific audiences?

• To generate maximum revenue (its no good having a film with a teenage subject matter with a 18 rating).
• To appeal to the biggest audience possible (often mass market).

How do they do it?

• Themes and issues that are raised (eg characters identities).
• Methods of advertising and marketig (place and type).
• The rating/certificate they intend to gain.

Our audience is 15 - early 20 year olds. This is partly because of what would happen in the whole film would earn the rating of 15. The context is also key, the opening is highly reliant on new technologies, which relates to our target audience and is something they are interested in. Also the thriller genre as a whole is aimed at this sort of age range.

Webcam

Our use of the webcam, is pretty unique (I've never seen a film use them, and I've seen lots of films) and is key to our whole opening. It links in with our target audience, who I talk about in detail in my evaluation. Also in aspect of the concept on voyeurism the use of a webcam plays on and develops the idea of watching and looking in.

Connotation and Denotation - Mission Impossible 2

I looked at the opening of the film (video below) This will follow the format of denotation - connotation after

• close up of Cruise's chalked hand gripping the rock face - strength, power, ability
• medium shot revealing Cruise sitting back on his heels, relaxing hi handsby his side - breather, tough, show off
• Cruise hanging from the rock face in a cross position - danger, strength, jesus; icon, powerful
• close up of Cruise wearing sunglasses - cool, mysterious

Copyrights are property of their respective owners. Used for educational use only.

The Points of a Thriller Opening

There are 2 fundamental points to a thriller opening, these are to gain the attention of the audience and to pursuade them to watch on, on the egde of their seat, full of tension.

Thriller Theory - Characters

There are many common characters in thrillers. Examples include assassins, characters with a dark past, cops, convicts, criminals, detectives, drifters, down-on-their-luck losers, duplicitous individuals, fugitives, innocent victims (often on the run), menaced women, people involved in twisted relationships, prison inmates, psycho-fiends, psychotic individuals, world weary people and many more.

Below are some famous thriller characters and the films they come from:

character: Sam Film: Ronin

The shadowy mother figure from the famous shower scene in Psycho

Character: Robert langdon Film: The DA Vinci Code

Momento (2000) - Christopher Nolan

General information

it is a psychological thriller

key thing which stands out is the use of the polaroid camera, which can be linked in with our use of a webcam

Sound

orchestral - it builds up & gets louder, uses strings, is downbeat, in minor key, is scored - shows reflection & sadness

sound changes when the camera takes a photo - it goes chimy/ windy

highly enhanced sounds - the scream for example, which is also very high pitched

diegetic sound - eg the flapping of the photo

has a voice over which is a convention of ilm noir - it puts audience in his shoes

in the flashbacks there are lots of noices which can only be described as little and weired - definitely shows confusion (audiences confusion as well as the characters confusion maybe)

lots of key quotes- eg "go down into the basement Teddy" - this is an enigma and it makes the audience inquisitive

Camerawork

shots of the polaroid camera at an angle

don't see the guys face - cocentrates on the camera & photo, audience then see extreme close up of him

lots of extreme/ close ups throughout

use of many other shots, angles and movements - eg low angled mid shots or tracking shots

graphic matchof his hands

Mise-en-scene

directional light from window

use of black & white - eg flashback

the settings - the motel, the run down/derelict building

Editing

some very very fast cutting - links with tension

slow tracking movement but it is very short in time length - juxtaposes

Themes

Revenge

memory

pain

loss (wife & his memory)

What We/ I Did

Right starting from the start, the original idea of basing the opening on webcams was Sam's and Hannah's idea. After talking about it we all agreed it would be a very good basis and after planning it came to include msn aswell as the video camera. Together we planned things like the narrative (what was actual going to happen), shot list- so what shots we were going to do, with information on movement angle and type of shot, we decided on the settings, which subsequently changed, the use of low key and naturistic lighting, costumes and props and the editing pace and transitions. We all had many ideas on the various concepts/factors based around our main idea and discussed them and came to agreements on each factor. There were of course a coupe of times where we broke ito arguement (or as I like to put it debate) and times when 2 of us would think 1 thing, and the other 2 would think something else. In the end, though we all agreed and were happy with our plan.

From then on a lot of tasks were broken up or were just 1 person tasks. So Sam did the storyboard basing it on our shot list and running it past us once he'd done it and after uploading the film I did most of the editing and all of the titles and sound work- from researching it, finding it, downloadng it to importing it into Imovie and editing it.

Obviously the filming was done as a group, shooting was mainly by me and Hannah as Sam and Tom were actors, but they contributed and did some too. Audience research was something we did do, just informally by getting friends to watch it, and target audience was mentioned rather scarcely in our first round of evaluations (Sam, Tom and Hannah on vido, me on blog). This is something I have rectified in my new evaluation aswell as going into more detail in the other topics.

Video of Casino Royale Opening & Image of Bourne Ultimatum

Below is a very low quality video of the opening of Casino Royale.

Copyrights are property of their respective owners. Used for educational use only.

I cannot find the opening of the Bourne Ultimatum on any of the video sites (youtube et al) so I got an image instead

The Hole

We looked at the opening of a short film called 'The Hole'. HEre are the things i noted down:

• point of view shot - when the character was walking down the track
• low level shot - when the character was on the phone
• over the shoulder shot - when the something was following her
• shallow focus - on the poster when it changes to her - link
• close up - of her feet walking along
• tracking shot - when the character was walking down the track
• dutch tilt/canted angle - on the school building - gothic

Textual Analysis- Casino Royale Vs. The Bourne Ultimatum

In this essay I am going to analyse the ways in which directors use cinematic techniques to build tension for the audience in the opening of The Bourne Ultimatum and Casino Royale. Both films are of the action/adventure genre and both were extremely successful.



In Casino Royale the opening is set in the Czech Republic. We are told told this in the first scene and it helps create the 'cold' imagery used, along with the snow and the use of black & white. In the office building it is dark which adds to the mystery of the first charater and makes us think that he shouldn't be there. In Bourne again the setting is in Eastern Europe again, this time in Russia. It is set in a much more busy area in the centre of Moscow and this makes it more action packed compared to Casino Royale. The lighing in Casino Royale is very dark apart from the toilet fighting scene. There is a big contrast between the conversation scene in which Bond is very much in shadow which makes him seem almost like the bad guy and the other character is not in shadow. In between the conversation there is a flashback which is the toilet fighting scene. In Bourne the lighting is quite similar all the way through which the main character is generally in part shadow, eg, in the street, train station and in the medical centre. Bond in Casino Royale seems very cool, calm and confident because hes in the dominant position but in the fight scene this is quite the opposite, he struggles with the enemy and after he kills him he seems quite emotional. This creates tension because there is such a contrast and the audience are not use to seeing Bond like that. In Bourne he seems agitated and is in obvious pain but doesn't let it affect him while he is chased, only when hes alone. This creates tension because were not quite sure why he is in pain and because of his limp, he is more likely to get caught.

In Casino Royale thereis an establishing shot which tells the audience the setting and location. As the man gets out of the car the low camera angle looks up on him, which makes him look important and emphasises his actions, him looking around to see if anyone else is around. As he walks into the office the camera is at a slight angle and pans. This makes the audience feel that everything is not as it seems and that someone is watching him which ends up being the case. During the conversation they use close ups mainly aswell as over the shoulder and wide shots. Also Bond is positioned in the frames at the left, while the other guy is on the right. During the fighting scene the camera is handheld and there is a birds eye viewpoint. It being handheld adds to the tension and the sense of struggle. In Bourne most of the camerawork is handheld which adds to the action and the sense that Bourne is in a hurry- he is on the run. When in the medical centre there are uses of midshots and close ups, a zoom into the face and a medium shot when hes holding the gun. They use these to show the emotion and reaction to Bourne because hes in a lot of pain.

In Casino Royale the editing is conventional. They use a lot of straight cuts throughout especially during conversation. At the cross cuts between the conversation and the fighting and during the fighting the ending is very fast paced. This creates a lot of tension. In Bourne there are a lot more jump cuts than in Casino Royale and has more pace. This keeps the audience interested, on edge and makes them want to see more.

In Casino Royale there is a soundtrack which is non - diegetic and has echoes eg footsteps which creates mystery and tension. Bourne uses a sound bridge which gets louder and louder and more dramatic as it goes on. It also has diegetic sound eg police sirens. Many of the sounds are enhanced to create more effect.

In conclusion I think Casino Royale is the most effective in creating tension but Bourne entices the audience more because it hasd a more action packed opening.

Leon - Luc Besson

Here is a list of some techniques used in the opening of Leon with some information of what is done, why / the effect and genre notes.

• use of crane shot through the city - audience understand location/setting, unique and different


• soundtrack - asynchronous, syncronised, it ends when something happens which makes the audience concentrate on what they can hear aswell as see, conventional


• extreme close ups - eg of main character, doesn't reveal him stright away, makes audience ask questions & creates mystery, relatively conventional and helps create a key element of the thriller genre; tension


• dramatic pauses - eg in dialogue eg "are you free on tuesday" ..................... "yeah I'm free on tuesday", again creates tension & is highly conventional


• use of shadow - creates mystery and and makes the audience ask questions, conventional


• things going on out of shot/ frame - eg voice out of frame, adds mystery & suspense - makes the audience ask questions, like whois saying that, whats happening etc


• enhanced diegetic sounds - eg neck breaking, knife, is implied violence, makes it highly obvious to the audience, very conventional


• character observation, main character is a hitman, he never misses a shot eg only 3 bullet holes, 3 bodies, 1 shot kills

Alfred Hitchcock

Alfred Hitchcock is considered the acknowledged auteur master of the thriller or suspense genre, manipulating his audience's fears and desires, and taking viewers into a state of association with the representation of reality facing the character.

The Thriller Genre

Thriller and suspense films are types of films known to promote intense excitement, suspense, a high level of anticipation, ultra - heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, and nerve wracking-tension.
A genuine thriller is a film that relentlessly pursues a single-minded goal to provide thrills and keep the audience cliff-hanging on the 'edge of their seats' as the plot builds towards a climax. The tension usually arises when the main character(s) is placed in a menacing situation or mystery, or an escape or dangerous mission from which escape seems impossible. Life itself is threatened, usually because the principle character is unsuspecting or unknowingly involved in a dnagerous or potentially deadly situation. Plots of thrillers involve characters which come into conflict with each other or with outside forces - the menace is sometimes abstract or shadowy.

Thriller Conventions

Technical

• tracking - pursuit, subjective
• point of view shots - watching, voyeurism (pleasure of watching), immediacy
• extreme/ close ups - concealment, expressions (fear, anxiety- audience share in the characters dilemma)
• reveals (tracking or zooming out to reveal detail)
• close ups (audience thinking about what is outside of the frame)
• diamatic angles & framing (dutch tilt) - put audience on edge, unease through strong diagonals
• cross cuts
• eerie, tense or discordant music, often builds in tempo, volume or pitch
• off screen sounds - concealment, audience imagination
• low key lighting & shadows
• strong directional lighting (chiaroscuro - high contrast)
• over exposed or other colour/ effect to signify flashbacks/ dreams
• lots of cutting on tension
• editing pace changes for chases, building to climax

Narrative

• plot twists & turns - complex, makes audience work
• cross cutting - suspense & tension
• flashbacks - dark past
• narrative retardation - vital info withheld
• red herrings - deliberately misleading audience
• chases/ pursuits
• mysterious characters (shady past, duplicatous, unsure of intentions, keeping audiences guessing)
• principle of concealment (leaves it to the audiences imagination)
• deadlines (bomb ticker, randson demands...)
• morally complex characters (more grey areas)