AS Media Studies

1. GROUP RESEARCH
Iris, Zain, Zak, Rayan

2. What is thriller?- Zak
Thriller novels usually involve a protagonist
who works to fight a foreign power, a
terrorist organisation, or a cruel villain.
Conflicts often involve espionage, financial
crimes, politics, or some kind of adventure.
No matter what, thrillers have a massive
stake.That’s exactly what makes them
exciting.Sometimes described as "heart-
pounding" and "fast-paced" thrillers are full
of apprehension, action, and aggression.
Whether humanity is at risk or billions of
dollars are at stake, these high-intensity
wars are key to a thriller storyline.

3. About thriller genre - Rayan
Thrillers are characterized by suspense - a feeling of excitement over what is to come next,
apprehension, anticipation and in some cases fear. These feelings develop through a narrative
from unpredictable events that make a viewer think about the consequences of a character’s
actions. Which creates a feeling of suspense to the audience. When it comes to thrillers, many
think of Alfred Hitchcock and his movies, like Psycho (1960) and Frenzy (1972), that contain
storylines of embezzlement, murder, wrong accusations, and more. However, the thriller genre
began much before these movies ever hit the big screen.
One of the earliest thriller genre prototypes was a poem called ‘Homer’s Odyssey’, having
similar techniques as today’s modern thrillers. The hero of this poem, Odysseus, travels
through a journey where he faces trials and hardships such as fighting mythical creatures
(one-eyed giant, sirens, etc), to return to his wife. His encounters through the journey create
suspense and leave the reader wondering if Odysseus will ever make it home, and if so, how
he will do it.
Learning about thriller comes to an advantage as it helps us include aspects to make it
enjoyable to watch and make it clear that our opening scene is a thriller.

4. Thriller sub-genres - Rayan
Horror thrillers are a combination of the horror and thriller genre. These focus on suspense, tension and adrenaline whilst still
putting an emphasis on fear, terror, and gore. Many thriller films tend to cross over into the horror genre and vice versa.
Science Fiction thrillers traditionally use heroes and villains as the main characters that follow some form of quest or mission
to save the world. The characters are used to create anticipation and suspense for the audience.
Action Thriller uses physical action to create suspense within the film. Like a traditional Action film, this sub-genre will often
have continuous motion and action including physical stunts, chases, fights, battles, and races. Often, these scenes will
contribute to the overall sense of danger that the protagonist is facing.
Crime Thriller film is a sub-genre that incorporates the suspenseful aspects of a thriller with a crime film plot. This sub-genre’s
plot usually centers on a serial killer, murderer, robbery, or manhunt. As opposed to traditional crime films, the storyline
focuses both around the criminal and the protagonist. Crime Thrillers use both action and psychological aspects to build
tension and suspense.
Psychological Thriller incorporates elements of drama and mystery film. The suspense in this sub-genre comes from the
mind, rather than from a psychical threat. The protagonists in Psychological Thrillers must rely on their mental resources to
solve the situation. Because of their nature, many Psychological Thrillers cross over into the Horror genre.
This was useful to research as it helped us understand what specific thriller we could base our opening scene on.

5. Thriller hybrid films-zak
Thrillers are often hybrids - there are lots of varieties of suspense-thrillers.The reason why we were able to define each
movie and put it into a hybrid genre is because of a man called Robert Stam and his famous genre theory. He believed that
genre is hard to define and categorize and that the concept of genre is made by critics and theorists.
Sci-fi thriller- alien(1979)
Western thriller - high noon (1952)
action thriller-power (2020)
Romantic comedy
thriller-safety last(1923)
Film noir thriller- double
indemnity (1944)
Crime caper thriller - the
french connection
(1971)

6. History of thriller genre - Zain
1920 - 1930
In 1926 a man named Alfred Hitchcock released his
3rd silent thriller called “The Lodger” which was a
Jack the ripper story filled with suspense.
In 1929 Alfred Hitchcock released another thriller
film called “Blackmail” which was the first thriller with
sound
In 1931 the German director Fritz Lang released a
film called “The Chilling”. The film was based on a
serial killer.
In 1933 another crime thriller was released called
“Murders In The Zoo” this was directed by Edward
Sutherland.
1940 - 1960
In 1940 Alfred Hitchcock released another thriller
film. He released “Foreign Correspondent” which
then went on to win the oscars.
In 1953 Henry Hathaway released a film called
Niagra which starred Marilyn Monroe who played a
character plotting to kill her husband.
In 1953 “Dial M for murder” was a film brought out
about a man plotting to kill his wife.
In 1960 Alfred Hitchcock released a disturbing
thriller called Psycho which had apparently left the
audience at the edge of their seats. It was about a
murderer who owned a motel.

7. 1970 - 1990
In 1972 After two decades of foreign films, Hitchcock
released an english film “The Frenzy” which was
shocking and violent and had high certificate ratings
everywhere it was shown.
In 1929 Alfred Hitchcock released another thriller
film called “Blackmail” which was the first thriller with
sound
In 1931 the German director Fritz Lang released a
film called “The Chilling”. The film was based on a
serial killer.
In 1933 another crime thriller was released called
“Murders In The Zoo” this was directed by Edward
Sutherland.
2000 - present
In 2001 the film “Hannibal” was released which is
a crime thriller directed by Ridley Scott.
In 2006 “The Da Vinci code” was directed by Ron
Howard which is more of a psychological thriller.
Based off of the book that was written by Dan
Brown.
In 2008 “Eden Lake” directed by James Watkins
released a thriller/horror.
In 2009 “Angels and Demons” which was based
on a book by Dan Brown is also a psychological
thriller.
In 2011 “Abduction” was released which was a
modern thriller with an all star cast and was
directed by John Singleton.
In 2013 The purge was released which was a
horror thriller as the movie industry progresses -
the more horror/thriller films are made.
In 2014 “The house october built” was released
and was also a horror/thriller.
In 2016 “The girl on the train” - a psychological
thriller that entices the audience and gets them to
think. It was directed by Tate Taylor, and had an
all star cast.

8. What is film distribution? - Zain, Rayan
Film distribution is the process by which the product (film, television show etc.) is released into the market; films don’t
become successful and well-known and successful by luck, it’s all up to the distributors to sell the product to television,
cinemas, airlines or any company that shows films or television shows as well as circulating and marketing the product so
that people can watch it at home via DVD, download etc. The distributors play a huge role in film production - without them,
no one would know about many great famous films today. Thriller films are always a great choice for low-budget films as
they focus on narrative.
Research methodology requires gathering relevant data from the various documents, websites, film journals from
whichever sources possible and compiling them in order to analyse the material and arrive at a more complete
understanding of movie distribution and answer following Issues:
How TV is impacting movie distribution
How online streaming eg. Youtube etc. are changing face of movie distribution
How above points can be leveraged by movie distributors to improve their distribution

9. Who usually distributes movies of your genre - Zak, Rayan
Film distribution is the process of launching a film and then sustaining the public's interest.
Warner bros
MS=10.5%
Wаrnеr Вrоѕ іѕ thе рrоduсtіоn hоuѕе оf UЅ which іѕ rаnkеd аmоng оnе
оf thе bеѕt еntеrtаіnmеnt рrоduсtіоn hоuѕеѕ іn thе wоrld. Іt іѕ thе оnlу
рrоduсtіоn соmраnу which hаѕ сrоѕѕеd mоrе thаn оnе bіllіоn іn thе
wоrld. Thе соmраnу hаѕ faced vаrіоuѕ рhаѕеѕ аѕ іt wаѕ founded а long
time ago. Аt рrеѕеnt, thе dіrесtоrѕ аnd рrоduсtѕ сhооѕе thіѕ рrоduсtіоn
hоuѕе fоr thеіr mоvіеѕ. Іt hаѕ gіvеn mаnу hіt mоvіеѕ tіll now whісh аrе
rаnkеd аmоng thе tорmоѕt fіlm оf аll tіmе such as the conjuring and
joker (2019)
Paramount
Pictures
MS=9.78%
Paramount pictures is another example of a famous distributer that
distributed famous thriller movies such as mission impossible.mission
impossible is seen to be the 16th highest grossing film series of all time
making it to be one of paramount's most successful movie sequel they
have produced.
Universal
Studio
MS=19.25%
Universal studios or pictures is an American film studio, owned by
NBCUniversal, and is one of Hollywood's "Big Six" film studios. It
has given many hits and many successful thriller movies such as
The Bourne Ultimatum and US.
Lions
Gate
MS=12.09%
lionsgate is a global content leader with a reputation for innovation
whose films interacts with millions of people around the world they
have produced a vast selection of thriller movies.Not only have they
produced top hit thriller movies but they have also made world wide hits
such as twilight and the hunger games.

10. Different ways we can distribute our film - Zain
Standard distribution: in the standard process, a movie is first released through cinemas (theatrical window) then, after approximately 16 and a half
weeks, it is released into services such as DVD, after an additional number of months it is released to pay TV and online subscription sites, and
approximately two years after its theatrical release date, it is made available for ‘free to air’ TV.
Pros of standard distribution:
➢ Availability to a wide range of people.
➢ Receives its own marketing from the sites and channels airing it.
➢ Gains income from multiple platforms.
➢ Gives the impression that the film is ‘new’ for a long time.
Cons of standard distribution:
➢ People may become frustrated from it as its advertised for a long period of time.
➢ After two years, it will have little income from the public, only from TV companies airing it etc.
Theatrical distribution: theatrical distribution is often if the distributors owns theatres or film distribution networks (e.g Universal owns Odeon) or through
theatrical exhibitors and other sub-distributors. A limited distributor may deal with only particular products, such as DVD or Blu-Ray or may act in a particular
country or market.
International distribution: For international distribution you must set processes, relationships anf fulfillment in order to get your film into the overseas market.
International agents are distributors, although they do not own a single theatre, home video label or television outlet. They are essentially distributors that
license films to territory distributors (buyers).

11. Simultaneous release: This takes place when a movie is made available on multiple different platforms (cinema, DVD, internet) at the same time
or very little difference in timing.
Pros of simultaneous release:
➢ Consumers may choose the platform that best fit their needs.
➢ Production studios only have to run one marketing campaign for all releases.
➢ Gain income from multiple platforms.
Cons of simultaneous release:
➢ Often regarded as experimental and thus does not receive substantial investment or promotion.
“Create space”: This is a rare option, but one i came across when researching distribution. “Create Space” is a company owned by amazon, that offer film
production as DVD’s on amazon. They help you self produce your film into a DVD for less money than traditional manufacturing. They help you distribute
your film via internet retail outlets and other retailers that may be interested in your product. A drawback they have however, is that there is no guarantee
that your product will be purchased.
Non-theatrical distribution: Based on out film budget, low standard of actors, undiscovered film company, and quality of general camerawork and editing,
our product would likely be a feature film under a non theatrical distribution. It is likely that our film would never be released in cinemas and would be sent
straight to retail because of its lack of marketability, look, story or premise.

12. Different ways we can distribute our film - Zain
Social media distribution:
Pros of social media distribution Cons of social media distribution
Can reach specific audiences easier, attract desired
attention, worldwide access.
Requires the target audience to have social media and
frequently use it.
Requires little investment and yet may still be seen by
many in the public.
Unfortunately ideas and aspects of the film may easily be
stolen.
Can be shared by others, so it has infinite copies to be
repeatedly seen.
Hard to grasp attention online especially amongst all
other advertisements.
Easily modified. Provides no income.
As well as for the film itself it helps build interest in the
production crew and cast as well as distributors and
studios.
Can receive negative feedback from ‘trolls’ resulting in a
lack of hype for the film.
Available to the public 24/7 Technology can sometimes be unreliable.

13. What are the typical codes and conventions? - iris,zak
The thriller genre revolves around anticipation and suspense, with the aim of it being to keep
the audience alert and on the edge of their seats. Tension and excitement are often used as the
main elements of thriller texts. Thriller is also a genre of literature, which also contains
anticipation and excitement. Action and Horror genres do tend to overlap with the thriller genre.
Thrillers often involve a sudden plot twist through it. Several characteristics help to define a
thriller film.
Some sub genres:
❏ Spy thriller
❏ Crime thriller
❏ Erotic thriller
❏ Supernatural thriller
❏ Conspiracy thriller
❏ Medical thriller

14. Codes and conventions - Iris, Zain
Conventions of thriller:
➔ Fast camera shots- they are used to increase the feeling of suspense and tension within the audience
➔ Low key lighting- its used to present a very dark atmosphere, that's either mysterious, dangerous or scary. Low key lighting also used
to shadow contrast of light in some darker areas
➔ Black and white shots- these shots are used to create a more dark and eerie feel to the film, it’s mostly used to make the shadows
stand out and for the lighting to be more exaggerated and dramatic.
➔ Non/Diegetic sound (scary music) - they’re is diegetic and non diegetic sounds throughout these type of films to build more tension
➔ Narrative dominated by the protagonists POV showing the problem they must overcome, the POV of the antagonist is sometimes
shown which allows the audience to have more information on them so they can build empathy for both the hero and the villain
➔ Violent behaviour
➔ Flashbacks are sometimes used to create the feeling of space and time disorientation, used to show past events to make the
audience understand the back story
➔ Constant plot twists
➔ Eventual domination over the antagonist, creating suspense and tension
➔ Settings that are seen as normal everyday environment - adding suspense as the action is unexpected.
➔ Distressed appearance.
➔ Eventual recognition of why the antagonist has acted this way, normally because of a connection with the protagonist so for revenge.
➔ Themes of isolation to show the character being vulnerable.
➔ Conventionally represent injustice and the battle between good and evil.

15. Codes and conventions - Iris, Zain
Mise en scene:
Lighting and colour- the use of lighting, allows the audience to anticipate what the genre of the film is on
by how the lighting is displayed (dark and sombre atmosphere). Therefore in thriller films low key lighting
is used often as it creates a mysterious atmosphere that would give off suspense while creating tension
as the audience is unaware of what could be happening/surrounding the character. Additionally, low key
lighting creates a dark menacing atmosphere to the scene.
Settings & Props- the setting can relate to location. Where the scene is being taken place or where a
scene is set. This could be an inside or outside location. Props are objects used by the actors
performing in the film. Depending on what props are being used, it can help determine the identity of
character and also the genre in a fim. Conventionally, thrillers are set in normal everyday environments
such as houses - this is because it adds suspense to the action as the antagonist is disturbing normality.
In addition, when there is a chase scene within the film is small, confined spaces they are normally used
to signify entrapment and isolation. Furthermore, props within the scene aid with the narrative of the film
and can provide information about the characters personality. Guns are conventionally used within
thrillers to symbolise danger.
Costumes & Makeup - The use of costumes and make up make the actors appear lifelike to the
character they are playing, for example on a thriller movie there could be a clown character and to make
him more realistic they add the costume and clown makeup. Conventionally characters within Thrillers
are shown to have smart appearances which suggests the characters personality and role. However,
costumes may also highlight the differences between the character showing contrasts in their
personality which creates mystery for the audience concerning the characters personality.

16. Codes and conventions - Zain, iris
Camera Work:
Thriller films conventionally adapt the use of different camera works to demonstrate immediate change in the situation. This can specifically be seen
within the thriller film ‘inception’ which uses shot types such as: Canted angle, Close up, Wide shot, Two shot and Wide shot to demonstrate different
situations. Camera work is an important aspect in a thriller film as it sets the mood for the audience, which helps build up tension so the film is more
effective.
Canted angle shot:
The canted angle shot
shows the situation as
unusual signifying that
something has happened
to change this. This type
of shot is conventional is
used to show distress, a
key theme in thrillers.
Close-up shot:
The shot shows key features of
the subject within the scene.
This is used to emphasise the
characters key details and
expressions, therefore showing
their emotions toward what is
happening.
Two Shot:
The two shot is used within
the scene in order to
establish a relationship or
connection between them.
Within the scene, it is used
to demonstrate the similar
situation the characters are
in. However, the scene
may also highlight their
differences such as
gender, age and clothing
Wide shot:
The wide shot places the subject in the middle of the
frame so that the audience is able to identify the
situation surrounding them.
Mid shot:
The mid shot allows the
audience to view the elements
of mis en scene such as
characters clothing and the
prop of the gun. Which
therefore tells the audience
what type of person the
character is.

17. Codes and conventions- iris, zain
Editing: Thrillers conventionally use editing techniques to increase element of suspense and tension. This can be seen through elements such as the
use of reaction shots which are designed to highlight the characters reaction when they are approached by the antagonist. Additionally, cuts always
emphasise what is happening around the situation in an alternative scene, conventionally, one scene is shown as chaotic whereas another demonstrates
calm, everyday life adding to the twists and suspense within the plot. In addition, the titles and captions on the film trailer are designed to emphasise the
narrative of the film. These create suspense and tension through their quick and catchy phrases, conventionally these also fade to black to emphasise the
scene has ended.
Titles: A lot of titles in films gives a good representation of the film itself. For example, the title of the movie IT is in red which represents blood, danger and
violence, the title is also shaped to look like there's blood dripping down to create more of an effect. Most of the time thriller movies use a lot of dark colors
and tones in the background behind the title (just like IT) to show all the types of negative emotions and themes that are portrayed in this genre. In thriller
movies it’s very rare to create a title with bright color because they create a more positive and happy mood.

18. Codes and conventions- iris, zain
Sound: Thrillers feature the use of elements such as ambient sound in order to increase tension and panic to the situation. “Scream”
incorporates the use of asynchronous background through the girls screaming when the title appears which allows the audience to
immediately recognise the nature of the film genre. Additionally, voice overs on a trailer draws the audience's attention as the trailer is
directly addressing them.
Sounds in thrillers can be split in four parts:
● Music
● Sound effects
● Dialogue
● Silence
The music, or in other terms the “scare”, can be used for many purposes, such as, to set the mood and atmosphere or even to bridge
two pieces of filming together. The music that’s often used is mostly pop music or modern contemporary. Orchestral music tends to be
used a lot in horror or thriller films because of how well it creates that scary and intense atmosphere, it makes the film look more alive
too and more dramatized. For example, orchestral music is very evident in the movie Psycho, which is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most
famous pieces. In the shower scene the whole scene is sort of elevated because of how high pitched the music could go. This is only
used to show the audience that something very shocking or scary is going to happen, most probably a jump scare to sort of prepare the
audience and let them know it’s the scary part of the scene.

19. Sound effects are used to make something sound real. For example, in a thriller movie they would over emphasize on the
footsteps because it was meant to create suspense and be sort of frightening. It can be laid over the movie in the editing or they
can be used in real movie time. For example in the movie IT the opening scene seems to show a storm and a lot of rain so they’d
have to use a loud sound effect for the rain to create that danger, so the audience could understand that the boy is going to be in
a lot of danger
Voice Overs can be used in two different ways. The voice over dialogue that you can hear in movies such as Shrek or Ice age, when its
cartoon characters and it’s not actually someone acting on camera and they use other peoples voices to make it sound like the animals
or Shrek is talking at a particular time. The latter is used in a way where the character tells you how he feels in a certain situation. Often
these are the most interesting parts of the movie as the audience knows exactly how a character feels, but it can also start to get boring
if it’s repetitive and too long.

20. Characters in thriller films - Zain
A thriller can be split into 3 sub genres; psychological, action and criminal thriller. In our movie idea, the subgenre is psychological and thriller.
However, the overlap is often found in characters that are typical of thrillers, even though their role may differ. An example of a famous psychological
thriller is “The Sixth Sense” (Dir. Shyamalan, 1999). Furthermore, “The Bourne Identity” (Dir. Liman, 2002) and “Reservoir Dogs” (Dir. Tarantino,
1992) are famous action crime thrillers respectively.
Characters in thrillers:
The innocent victim:
Each thriller requires a victim to show the
power of the antagonist. Usually these
victims are in groups, although it can be
found that a singular victim is used to show
the villain deteriorating the victims physical
or mental state.
An innocent victim is Jodie Foster’s,
played by Clarice Starling in “Silence Of
The Lambs” (Dir. Demme, 1991). The film
is primarily known as a horror but has
many psychological thriller aspects. She is
shown interrogating serial killer and
cannibal Lecter to gain information about
another character on the loose, Buffalo
Bill. In various scenes she is shown
suffering as a result of talking to him and is
clearly uncomfortable during scenes with
him.
other kinds of innocent
victims include a typical
‘chatterbox’ character,
usually a young women
or a young couple.
Criminals and convicts:
The first major threat in thriller movies are
criminals that corrupt the main character
during their time in prison or escaped
convicts that are a threat to society.
In “Silence Of The Lambs”, Anthony
Hopkins plays Hannibal Lector, a serial
killer who is in prison and is being asked to
provide information on another killer.
During scenes, in which he is being
interrogated, he seems like a dangerous
character with long takes of his crazed
face often being the main focus. He is a
threat in the film, who constantly feels to
be perpetuating danger.
These characters already connote danger
after being in prison for doing something
wrong, which aids them in appearing as
lethal to the character.
Stalkers and creepy attitudes:
In a psychological thriller, a stalker can be
the main villain and threat to the innocent
victim. Their obsessive behaviour appears
as frightening in the movie and will show
the audience who the antagonist is from
the start without the need of mass
exposition.
Sometimes the stalker does not need to
have a physical presence to be scary. A
sense of unease can be created through
mentioning of their actions or attitudes
“The Blair Witch Project” (Dir. Sanchez,
1999) is often regarded as one of the great
psychological films and it shows no
manifestation of the threat to the
characters throughout the movie.
A general tone of malice can be created
around a character through multiple film-
making methods. Long takes that continue
after the other character has started
talking, obsessive behaviour and acting
unnatural can all create this sense.
The Law:
The law, in form of the police or a
generally powerful character, is present in
thriller films - but fulfills different roles in
action and psychological thrillers.
In an action thriller, the law can often be an
antagonistic presence, They oppose the
criminal who is the main character for the
film, often fighting for a cause the audience
can support. This is seen lots in the action
thriller “Fast and Furious” series.
However, in psychological thrillers the law
can often be an end goal or protector for
the main characters. The aim is often to
call the police or be protected by them
throughout. The “Silence Of The Lambs”
shows clarice as being under constant
protection from the law.

21. Thriller Conventions - Costume Rayan
Costume varies across the different sub genres in a thriller. the different costumes depend on the different characters and settings in the film. For
example in an office setting a suit may be used for the costume, whereas if the film was set in a rougher area old worn clothes may be used.
Costume is important in the thriller genre because it can tell an audience a lot about a character before they even do anything. Depending on the
costume you can make a character seem richer or poor, important or an average citizen and can tell the audience what job they have too.
For example, since police are used in most crime thriller films, a police or detective costume is important. The costume must look realistic to take the
film seriously, often for a police officer this is a blue shirt of polo shirt with a navy blue vest and navy trousers. It is important that anyone with the
same role all have matching costumes in order to maintain the set look of this character. For detectives on the other hand, most of these characters
wear casual clothes and do not have to wear a uniform. However the costume must still suit the character. In the case of detectives, often a shirt and
jeans is used under a long coat or jacket, this makes the character look smart but at the same time aware of the stereotypical detective look so that
the audience are aware of who the character is through the use of the costume.
Costume is an important factor that we have to
consider when making an opening scene. We now
have an idea of what our costumes could be like to
enhance the scene.

22. Movie statistics - Rayan
A good thriller movie showcases intense excitement. It builds up the audience’s suspense and anticipation and provides thrills from
various circumstances presented in the story, where the main character encounters certain types of menacing, challenging and
dangerous situations. The ones that made the most amount of money in box office are:
Rank Movie Worldwide box office Domestic box office International box office
1 (2019) Joker $1,072,507,517 $335,451,311 $737,056,206
2 The Da Vinci Code $767,820,459 $217,536,138 $550,284,321
3 Inception $728,582,465 $292,576,195 $436,006,270
4 Gravity $689,742,192 $274,092,705 $415,649,487
5 The hunger games $677,923,379 $408,010,692 $269,912,687
6 The Sixth Sense $672,806,292 $293,506,292 $379,300,000

23. (2019) Joker Warner bros. Village Roadshow Pictures,
DC Comics, BRON Studios
The Da Vinci Code Image entertainment, Columbia Pictures
Corporation, Skylark Productions
Inception Syncope, Warner bros, legendary
entertainment
Gravity Warner Bros. Heyday Films
The hunger games Lionsgate
The Sixth Sense Hollywood Pictures, Spyglass
Entertainment
Film distributors of the most
selling box office movies.
We researched Movie
statistics and distributors to
give us knowledge on what
makes a successful thriller
film.

24. Most successful IMDb rating of thriller movies- Rayan
The ranking also depends on
how many people have rated
the movie not just the number.
We were able to check
the review comments
to see what the
audience enjoyed
about the movie. This
could help us improve
our opening scene.

25. Analysis- Joker, Rayan
(1574) JOKER (2019) Opening Scene Movie Clip HD - YouTube
Through the opening scene we can identify the genre as a thriller from the unsettling atmosphere that is being portrayed by the clown.
The scene starts off with a long shot showing different people in a room (among them clowns), getting along with their day. The camera
gradually gets closer and closer to the character doing his makeup. An invisible cut is used to transition into a close-up shot of the
character applying what seems to be painting on his face. Close-up shots of the clown staring at the mirror are used. This enables the
audience to focus on his facial expressions, where he is forcefully trying to smile and physically puts two fingers in his mouth and
forces a smile. A tear then comes down his eyes. From this the audience can infer that he is hurt, trying to lighten his mood and it gives
off an unsettling feeling of the character. Diegetic sound of a radio playing and some people talking in the background can be heard
and the lights in the room are dim.There are also lockers visible. We can infer that the place is more likely for working class people and
there it isn’t a happy environment. The audience would have a feeling of anticipation as they would want to know what is going on with
the clown.

26. We can also infer that it’s a thriller through people mistreating the clown which ends up in a chase that creates
suspense. The scene cuts to the clown spinning a sign on the sidewalk with people passing through. Long shots of him
spinning the sign and people passing through are used to show his surroundings. Close-up shots are used to show his
smiling facial expressions in contrast to how he was previously. Diegetic sound of a busy place and a guy playing the
piano are heard, which could mean that those are working hours. As the scene goes on, we can hear people telling him
how he isn’t a good clown until some teenagers steal his sign and start running. As he is changing them across the
street, the audience’s suspense builds up as the clown is putting himself at risk by blindly chasing them. They reach a
shady ally in between two building where the teenagers beat the clown up and break the sign on him. This shows how he
was innocently trying to do his work and how society treated him. Creating both anticipation and suspense, the audience
are intrigued to know more about the clown and his life as well as, what directed his behavior.

27. The opening scene contributes to realism. It portrays the reality of work culture and shows that as
innocent as the clown is, he is struggling with something. This creates a disturbing feeling and the
audience would sympathize with the clown. An extreme long shot is used to show the setting of
when the scene cuts from the dim room to a busy street. Diegetic sound of the guy playing the piano
on the streets makes the scene feel fun or less serious. A medium shot of the pianist is used, which
might be to give us an idea that there are people trying to earn money on the streets and they come
off as working class. When the kids knock the sign down and start hitting the clown in the ally, a soft
score starts playing. This enhances the scene towards the end as it creates a more dramatic
atmosphere where the audience have this unpleasant feeling of what just happened and have
empathy towards the clown. The facial expressions of the clown throughout the whole of the
opening scene vary. His initial expressions were him trying to smile but not having the ability to,
smiling facial expressions when spinning the sign and finally we can see that he is hurt badly as he
is crying on the ground. From this we notice that society isn’t treating him as it should, and he
doesn’t have the power to do anything other then stay optimistic. Clowns are usually portrayed as
happy people or villains in a horror movie; however, this clown challenges the stereotype as he is
seen both not happy and just a regular person.

28. Opening scene analysis - Zain
(Se7en)
Right from the beginning, we hear the ambient sounds of an urban setting, sirens and traffic. The sirens hint
at the ideology of law enforcement vs criminals. Dialogue is used to convey information effectivly but subtly,
as we come aware of Somerset’s inquisitive nature with the simple question “Did the kid see it?” and then
his impending retirement “You know, we’re all real glad we’re getting rid of you” The sound of the rain in
Somerset and Mills’ first conversation sets up a pathetic fallacy; signalling the impeding ‘storm’ that the
murder is creating. Somerset’s use of the sound of the metronome when he is in bed heightens the sense of
his loneliness, and makes pathos.
Backlighting is prominent in this opening scene, as both Somerset and the other officer are backlit in the
crime scene, which is foreboding and heightens the sense of mystery. Low-key lighting is used when the
characters are indoors, such as in Somerset’s room, and at the crime scene. This makes the film seem
foreboding. Chiaroscuro lighting appears, and the contrast in lighting suggests the ideology of good and evil.
David Fincher’s signature green tint is shown throughout, and it displays him as an auteur.
There's an overwhelming amount of white in mis-en-scene in the very first scene, from Somerset’s costume
of a white shirt, to the setting of a white room, to the prop of the white fridge. In contrast, there are a lot of
dark shadows surrounding the white; the black curtain and the backlit chessboard and ornaments. This
immediatly shows Somerset to be a pure chracter surrounded by darkness and murder. Somersets costume
of a crisp shirt and focus on perfecting his tie, as well as the neat setting of his bedroom, contrast with Mills
later on, whos costume is a dishevelled comedy tie and crumpled shirt. The overhead shot of his personal
items gives an overview of his character: the holstered gun suggests a dislike to the violence that surrounds
him, the pen is his inquisitive nature, and the white handkerchief is his good nature.

29. Opening scene analysis - Zain
(Se7en)
Title sequence
It opens with a pleonastic beginning to a remix of Nine Inch Nails ‘closer’, and the
typography is a scratchy scrawl, both suggesting the ideology of mental instability
through a sense of anger, which is a thriller convention. Jump cuts and flashing
overlays also suggest mental illness, as they create a sense of unease.
Kyle Cooper designed this title sequence to “get an idea of the killer before they finally
catch him. We wanted to get the audience curious of what this guy is going to be”
Through the symbolism presented to us in flashes, we get a sense of this. He cuts off
his fingertips, foreshadowing how Somerset and Mills are unable to find fingerprints,
and the excess of writing in the journals (that are found later on) show his meticulous
and obsessive nature. There’s bursts of red, taken from the setting of his darkroom,
that hints at the upcoming violence, as red is associated with blood. This is made more
intense as it contrasts with Fincher’s signature green tint. The black marker going over
the words and eyes also heightens the sense of mystery.
New line cinema’s classic animated logo is used, which has film falling into place with
a square, and blue light emitting, which makes it seen eerie. The white typography
contrasts to the black background nicely. The reflective surface in the beginning also
suggests the calm before the storm.

30. Opening scene analysis - Zain
(Nightcrawler)
Lowkey lighting and backlighting are used initially, and they heighten the
suspense, mystery behind the characters actions and the ominous sense of the
forbidden. Chiaroscuro lighting also shows the duality of his character; the
person he’s trying to present to the guard and who he really is. There’s a green
hue to the scene, reminiscent of David Fincher, which makes the protagonist
look sick, hinting towards his mental instability (a common ideology in thrillers).
The urban setting is typical for thrillers, and the ambient noises of the sirens in
the background heighten the criminal nature of the protagonist. The pleonastic
sound of the trains horn shocks the audience, and hides the sound of the
protagonist mugging the security, creating a sense of unease. The ambient
noise of the radio talking about lack of employment also foreshadows the
ideology of employment, and the protagonist’s poverty that gives him reason to
make his decisions.
There is an establishing shot and then a match on action of the protagonist
cutting the fence, to establish his criminal nature. There’s a close up shot of him
trying to act innocent with the guard, and combined with the guards off-screen
dialogue, it gives a sense of unease, which is associated with the protagonist
throughout the film.

31. Opening scene analysis - Zain
(Nightcrawler)
Title sequence
Opening the film, the title sequence sets the scene with shots of a city at night-time,
desolate with no visible faces of actors, and lit only by the artificial moonlight. Both,
night-time and urban setting are thriller conventions, as they heighten mystery through
low lighting and anonymity. However, although it is set entirely at night, there’s still
vibrant coloring, leaning towards more dusky colors. This emphasises the desert
environment, as the colors are often associated. The empty roads and almost static
shots contrats the typically busy urban setting, and combined with the lack of visible
actors, it sets up an ideology of loneliness. The echoing score of the lone guitar adds
on to this. The only shot of people is wide-angle, and gives us a sense of outside
looking in, and represents urban people as being impersonal. There are symbols of
transports used; the row of buses, the worms eye view shot of the plane flying
overhead, and the empty roads and road signs. It foreshadows the protagonists future.
The typography is in a white and clear font, standing out from the dark scenes.
Reflects the clear-cut way the protagonist sees the world.
The Bold Films logo is animated, letter appearing within a billow of smoke, and going
from bold to thin. It’s simple and effective, the smoke drifting through is serene. The
letters glow white at the end, emphasising. It stands out well from the black
background.

32. Opening scene analysis - Zain
(Inception)
The camera use in inception’s opening is standard using mid-shots and panning camera, and with
extremely smooth camera movements. The opening does not have an establishing shot, instead it
starts with the main character close up, the camera follows the same style multiple times showing
Leonardo Dicaprio the most then Joseph Gordon and Ken Watanabe the least, the audience is able to
see the different of importance between those characters in the movie.
The opening of inception starts with only diegetic sounds, after the first conversation, you can hear
non-diegetic sounds in the background from the previous dream, the volume of the ticking is amplified
in the middle of the scene to add importance to what the time passing quickly represents, background
music starts playing when the characters wife appears creating a sad theme for the scene and the
background music changes to a slower tone to make the audience feel mysterious.
Inceptions opening doesn’t have lots of complicated editing as most transitions are standard cuts, the
opening doesn’t have any credits other than logos of companies. The opening has two settings
happening at the same time there is the main setting where the characters are talking and the setting
where the character is sleeping and explosions are happening, both those settings are separated by
the clock scene in the middle, that is pointing out to how time moves slower.
The opening scene of inception has lots of interesting probes, from the start of the opening you can
see the main characters are in some kind of eastern-asian styled room and according to the clothing
of the character they can be at an important meeting or party. As the scene progresses the audience
discovers that the story is taking place in some kind of Japanese styled grand hotel, but with cuts to
other settings in the middle gets the audience confused about where the scenes are taking place.
One impressive thing about inception is how the audience is thrown into the middle of the plot without
the audience knowing about inception and dreams etc. Which causes the audience to be more
interested to know what inception is meant to be (which is explained in the first arc of the movie) there
is also the part about the dialogue that makes the audience make some sense out of what is
happening but not know the full story. The opening of inception tries to be as confusing as possible to
make the audience interested in what happens next.

33. Opening scene Analysis-zak
(the maze runner)
The maze runner,opening scene - The Maze Runner Opening Scene - HD
The viewer can only hear the sound of machines at the outset of the opening scene this makes the film look more
puzzling and will make the viewer want to continue to watch the film. The movies main character,Thomas,is still
not awake at the start of the scene.As the viewer can also see nothing on the screen,the directors of the film did
this to make the audience feel more connected to the main character.The scene was taken to make the viewer
feel lost much like the main character, it's also a mid shot, but the main character isn't in the frame yet. For a few
seconds, the sound of the elevator becomes quieter, and the character unexpectedly sits up and makes a lot of
noise. Sudden action and noise make the viewer pay attention to what Thomas is trying to do. Then the mid shot
switches to the long shot so that you can see more of how the cage feels and see the entire body of the main
character. Thomas vomits and coughs, and as he does the angle of the shot changes from the angle of the eye
to the angle of the bird’s eye view.He gets up when he hears the noise of an animal. When the animal scares
Thomas, the noise of the lift remains the same.This indicates that the director didn't mean it was a jump scare or
a shock at all. As the lift keeps going up, it's going faster and faster.The noise of the computer continues getting
louder and louder and the shot switches to the worms eye view shot showing the ceiling of the Thomas structure
illuminated with red light. The scene is building up suspense, and then unexpectedly the lift stops.The red light
turns into a green and the rooftop opens.Thomas has been welcomed by a large group of teenage boys. When
Thomas sees the large group of boys he starts to run away and then falls, he then gets back up and realizes
where he his, the camera then follows him as he gets more curious.

34. Questionnaire - Iris

35. Questionnaire - Iris

36. Questionnaire - Iris 1,4,6,9,10

39. Data collected from questionnaire - Iris
This pie chart shows the amount of people
who prefer each sub genre more. 54%
was the highest which is psychological so
we could take our audiences advice on
board and create scenes or use any props
to create that. The one that came second
was criminal on 36% slightly lower than
psychological so we might have to see the
pros and cons of each one of those and
create it. We could use a little bit of both.
The least favorite for everyone was horror
and the main reason was because horror
and thriller and very similar so it wouldn’t
make a difference to our movie. We won’t
be using horror. Horror came out with the
lowest which was 10%.

40. Questionnaire Analysis - Iris
I created this questionnaire to find out what our
audience liked to see in a thriller movie. It was 10
people in total, 5 girls and 5 boys. The
questionnaire helped us find out the sub genre we
will focus on and what age group we would aim it
at, the age group that were gonna be focusing on
is ages 15-24. With this information we have to
make sure that it’s appropriate for those ages to
watch and research what they find boring and
what they find exciting in the movies they watch.

41. Audience - Zain
In general, thrillers attract a whole range of
target audiences as a familiarity amongst all
audiences is that the majority of people enjoy
the pleasure of watching a film with a little
tension and excitement. Amongst all target
audiences within the film industry mid-teens
and young adults tend to watch thriller films
the most, specifically from ages 15-24. The
reason being that both teenagers half way
through their teen years, and young adults do
not have much of a difference between them,
as a majority of the mid-teens are studying
sixth form or college and majority of young
adults are studying in university. Therefore
due to the similar lifestyles, both mid-teens
and young adults have similar interests such
as watching thriller films.
A thriller film is embodied by the typical codes and
conventions. Such as, lowkey lighting, camera shots, dark
colors, a thrilling story line and more. All these codes and
conventions put together attract mid-teens and young adults
as both target markets are at a young age, which implies
they are desperate to take risks in order to live their lives to
the fullest. Courageous emotions like this are incorporated
within thriller films they are literally left on the edge of their
seat. The reason being is all the codes and conventions have
been exaggerated which implies a greater impact on the
audience.
The target audience is an important factor of a thriller film as
of any other genre of film, as it is a reaction from the target
audience that infers weather the film is good or not. This
means that when the initial release of the film is arriving
such things as viral marketing will take place, as a call for
the target audience so that when the film is released there is
a positive reaction from the target audience.

42. Audience - Zain
There is a big range of people, both genders like crime films, however as we are creating our own thriller opening sequence,
we will need to take in consideration the target audience to who watch crime films and not only thriller films. We will then
combine the two together to create a target audience of our own. Crime thrillers are usually targeted towards a mature
audience due to the strong language and scenarios (e.g. murder).
➔ The target audience for our thriller film is both male and female aged predominantly between 15-24, as most people
who took the questionnaire were within this age group. However, due to the broad amount of sub-genres featured
within thrillers, the trailers may also appeal to younger or older than this age group.
➔ Thrillers appeal to both male and female audiences and a variety of social classes conventionally through the use of
relatable characters and themes throughout the film.
➔ The target audience would also be interested in modern life and technologies, this is linked to the thriller genre which
is conventionally influenced by real-life events.
➔ A key point of thrillers that interests my target audience is suspense and tension. This is specifically seen in
psychological thrillers which uses constant twists in plot to keep the audience on the edge of their seat.
Overall, Thrillers appeal to a wide audience and the large variety of sub-genres means that thriller genre can
easily relate to a range of audiences.

43. Audience: Demographics- Rayan
Age: Many thriller movies are targeted
towards a 15+ audience, however,
psychological thrillers tend to be 18+
due to having many violent and sexual
scenes. They are often aimed at a
mature audience of (young) adults as it
may be too much to handle for
younger audiences. Our target
audiences age is 15-24
Gender:
When it comes to gender, there is a
close to equal amount of males and
females who watch thriller. Taking the
united states population as example,
by 2018, 84 % of the viewers were
male and 83 % were female.
Location: most thriller films are
usually set in America including
very successful ones such as the
sixth sense. This makes it more
relatable for Americans and
targeted towards them. Some
films however, have different
locations where scenes would be
set such as the movie inception. It
would have a broad target
audience such as people from
Tokyo, England, Canada and
America.
Ethnicity: Thrillers could have a specific target
audience depending on the cast (actors/actresses
in the film). People of different races may appeal to
the film, if the cast includes people of different
races.
Socio-Economic group: Thriller
does not really have a set target
audience as it is broad, however, it
may be relatable to the working
class because the people who tend
to view these films are young
adults still in education. It may also
appeal to the middle class due to
the characters portrayed in the
movies are more investigative
characters like professors or
detectives linking to the theme of
problem solving.
This gives us a greater
understanding of whom the
audience is and how we can
direct it towards them.

44. Audience - Psychographics - Rayan Mainstreamers:
Thriller would appeal to
this psychographics
because it is usually
broad. Thriller goes in the
top 5 most watched
genres and this would
mainly be the reason on
why most of their
audience are
mainstreamers. .

45. Mind map - Zain
Thriller
opening ideas
‘Old footage’ of girl
filming right before she
is kidnapped
Character
Outcast
Girl - because they are
more vulnerable than men
Repressed?
Lonely
Speaking english
Casting - ?? still unsure
Potential
ideas for
how and
who
Constantly
watched/stalked (see in
background of footage)
but she is oblivious?
Someone is following
her?
Camera footage
Static, tones of yellow?
First of her, then she
drops the camera onto the
floor and screen goes
black
She is initially filming for a
type of project/exploring?
Setting
Woods? Park? Dark
alley?
Could be meeting
someone she met online
Maybe a vlogger?
If somewhere isolated - she is
scared
If not, she is naive
Main character - girl is
filming
Costumes
Girl either in
casual attire or
school uniform
Man in all black if
shown or clothes that
blend in with the public
If kidnapper is shown, it’s
a middle aged man.
Props
Camera, phone, School
bag?