Institutions and audiences research

Institutions

20th Century Fox

• film corporation which is one of the six major film studios.
• founded in 1904 in New York City by William fox, a 25 year old Jewish Hungarian immigrant.
• subsidiary of News Corporation which is/was owned by Rupert Murdoch.
• Produced some very successful films, e.g. Avatar, Star Wars, Speed and The Chronicles of Narnia.
• Mostly create comedy and family films as these are more profitable, such as Alvin and The Chipmunks. However, they also create horror films, such as "From Hell".
• They also create thrillers, such as new release "A Good Day to Die Hard".

Warner Bros.

• founded in 1923
• American producer of film, television and music entertainment.
• a subsidiary of Time Warner
• has many of its own subsidiaries, such as Warner Bros. Studios, Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video.
• produced many recent films, such as "Beautiful Creatures" and "The Hangover Part 111" as well as well-known films, such as "The Dark Knight Rises" and "Red Dust". 
• it is a fully-integrated, broad-based, entertainment company and a global leader in the creation, production, distribution, licensing and marketing of all forms of entertainment and their related businesses.
• Warner Bros. either fully finance or co-finance the films it produces and maintains worldwide distribution rights.
• Monetizes its distribution and marketing operations by distributing films that are totally financed and produced by third parties.

Hammer Films

• a film production company based in the UK, founded in 1934.
• a hugely successful run of Gothic monster movies cemented the company's reputation as "Hammer House of Horror".
• although it focuses mainly on horror films, it also has a varied history, including noir, action-adventure movies, psychological thrillers and historical epics.
• worldwide smash "The Woman in Black" was produced by Hammer Films, and is now up for 2 Empire awards.
• This company is noticeably smaller in comparison to the above American companies, and tends to produce more individual films while the American institutions (Warner Bros. and 21st Century Fox) tend to produce more mainstream films.

Audiences

As the audience of any film is perhaps the most important aspect that will constitute the film's success, it is vital that I research the target audience of thriller films and relate it to my own film. This will be essential in ensuring that my film is successful in entertaining and enticing the audience.

Audiences of thrillers are not simply a certain age group, or gender, but also a certain type of personality. Those who watch thrillers tend to be:

•  individuals who could be considered "risk takers" 
• those who are educated (as there is usually an enigma which the individual works out independently while watching the film)
• people who enjoy suspense and tension within films

As we have decided that our thriller film would be primarily be aimed at a target audience of females aged between 18 and 24, we conducted interviews of people in this demographic. This would enable us to gain an insight into what our film should include and offer the audience in order for our film opening to be effective.

Hannah Duffin - 19 year old female

Gantt Chart

I have created this gantt chart (as seen below) in order to ensure that I complete all tasks set by the deadline. This will help me to manage my time and ensure that I can make any last minute changes and resolve issues. The use of this gantt chart is essential as they are used to break up large projects, such as creating a film opening into smaller, more manageable tasks. As the columns on the right suggest the week in which each task should be completed it puts the tasks into a chronological order, making completion deadlines easier to follow. In addition, by creating the gantt chart it becomes apparent that I, as an individual, understand the requirements of this project, meaning that it will be completed successfully.

Location Recce

We created a recce for each location that we shot our film in, in order establish whether the location was suitable for the event and if using the venue was likely to create any additional potential problems or additional costs.

Photographs while shooting

Informing the actress used (Georgia Milkins) of where to position herself in order for filming to commence.

The actress walking away from the bus stop and towards Victoria Road bridge.

Ready to begin filming the actress walking off the bus at the bus stop.

The actress turning to look the opposite direction due to what has been said during a phone call.

The actress adding the finishing touches to costume in order to begin filming of the opening scene.

Storyboard of our film

Before shooting or planning on location, we decided to storyboard what we intended to shoot as a guideline for shot types and positioning of actors and props. This helped us greatly when planning our filming, as the guideline proved useful when deciding where actors should be positions and what shots should be used to create the appropriate effects.

The first page of our storyboard

The second page of our storyboard

The third and final page of our storyboard

When we began filming, it soon became apparent that we would have to change our original plan, as we found many errors with our original story board. The largest error that soon became visible once we had began filming was the lack of close ups and medium close ups. We decided that there needed to be much more of these as they create tension, vital in ensuring that the audience know that they are watching a thriller. It is also important as our opening contains no dialogue, so close ups would be the only indication as to the emotion of the protagonist and also highlighting important areas of filming, for example, the importance of the briefcase.

In addition, we had originally planned to shoot the beginning half of our film opening in Bristol city centre, and the second half in Warmley, distinguishing between the two using shots of the protagonist on a bus. However, after shooting the end of our film first, we soon realised that filming in the city centre would be very complex for a number of reasons, including the fact that it would be busy and so passers by would constantly obstruct our filming. Also, we realised that if our camera were to run out of power, charging it would be an issue. This would not be so if we were filming in Warmley, as we could return home and charge it before continuing. This would reduce the risk of us getting behind on our filming schedule as we would not have to stop filming for the whole day if the camera were to run out of power.

Below is our second storyboard.

The first page of our storyboard

The second page of our storyboard

The third page of our storyboard

The fourth and final page of our storyboard

Actors, locations, costumes and props

Actor

Name: Georgia Milkins

D.O.B: 27/06/96

Sex: Female

Locations

• Inside a bus on the downstairs floor. The protagonist (the woman) will be sat two rows in front of the person filming.

• Victoria Road bridge where the protagonist will leave the briefcase at the end of the opening

• Bus stop where the protagonist will exit the bus and proceed to Victoria Road bridge

• Bus stop where the protagonist will get on the bus with the briefcase

• Pavements along the main road in between the bus stop in which the protagonist will exit and the Victoria Road bridge

• Coniston Close lane where the protagonist will collect the briefcase ensuring that their identity remains unknown.

Costume

• Blazer
• Smart trousers
• White floral blouse
• Red lipstick
• Classic up-do for hair 
• Black high heels

Georgia Milkins wearing her costume to begin filming, as described above. This costume, which makes the character appear to be relatively formal creates a binary opposition with the location, making the audience question what she would be doing in such an area.

Props

• Briefcase

• Mobile phone (black iPhone 4)

Shotlist

• Over shoulder shot - when following the woman through town

Example of over shoulder shot

• Close up - woman's legs as she reaches down to pick up the briefcase, woman's head as she walks towards the stairs on the bus, woman getting off the bus.

Example of close up

• Mid shot - woman walking away from bridge with briefcase, when follower hides behind pillar and woman turns around, woman getting on the bus, woman walking down a road to a small lane.

Example of mid shot

• Long shot - woman walking along the opposite side of the pavement, woman walking on to a bridge.

Example of long shot

• Medium close up - back of woman's head as the camera is following her closely.

Example of medium close up

• Medium long shot - woman sat three rows ahead of the follower on the bus.

Example of medium long shot

• Big close up - woman's face as she is on the phone, briefcase alone on the bridge.

Example of big close up

• Panning shot - follower looks where woman is looking and nothing is there.

Example of panning shot (would be moving)

My shortlist I have created

I have created the shortlist below to use while filming my thriller opening in order to ensure that I film all the relevant shots and also to make sure that I do not miss any shots, later realise and then have to re-film. I can then tick the "complete" column when each shot has been completed so that I know what still needs to be done and where I am at with my filming.

Who is our target audience?

Based on the content of our thriller opening, and the fact that it is a thriller, we have decided that our primary target audience would be female adults aged 18 to 24 as we have used a strong, female protagonist, similar to more recent thriller films. As the female protagonist is not an object of male desire but an object of female aspiration, it would thoroughly appeal to women.

 However, we have also discussed the idea that many thrillers can be enjoyed by people of all ages. Therefore, we believe that we also have a secondary target audience of all people above the age of our primary target audience, and also males as the idea of a strong, independent female protagonist may also appeal to them. Despite discussing the idea that individuals of all ages can enjoy thriller films, we also decided that perhaps this could exclude elderly people above 80, as they may not enjoy the use of quick cuts and obtrusive editing as this would alarm them. However, this would depend on the personality of the individual and also their state of health.

We have researched further into the target audiences of other thriller films, and concluded that thrillers can be aimed at many different audiences depending on the thriller itself and the sub-genre.

For example
Silence of the Lambs can be considered by many as one of the best thrillers of recent times, and is rated an 18 as it contains explicit content. Also, as there may be scenes of violence, it can be argued that the target audience of this film would be males. However, due to the fact that children in the UK are brought up to be independent and strong-willed, this film may also aim to target females as well as males as they may have adapted many more supposedly masculine traits following the ever-increasing equality and status between men and women in recent years.

Se7en is another example of a thriller, but this time a crime thriller, meaning that the target audience may again be slightly different. It may contain less, more or an equal amount of explicit content, yet it would be considered by many to have an older target audience. This would be because it is a crime thriller, meaning that viewers must have an understanding of laws as well as the ability to follow the story line and attempt to work out the enigma created. However, some may argue that this only has partly to do with age, and also includes factors such as the intelligence and personality of the audience. For example, a less educated individual may find it harder to follow a complicated story line, whereas a well-educated individual may not only be able to follow the story line, but find it intoxicating.

How do I intend to use and abuse the codes and conventions of the thriller?

When creating our thriller opening, we are going to stick to many of the stereotypical codes and conventions of the thriller. However, we are going to add a slight twist. After having researched the codes and conventions of thrillers, I have come to a conclusion as to what I am going to do with them for my target audience (women aged 18 to 24).

Throughout our film, we will use many codes and conventions commonly found in a thriller, such as:

• Quick cuts
• Obtrusive editing
• Creating an enigma
• Hand held shots
• Close up's
• Over shoulder shots

We will use these to create suspense and, quite simply, to ensure that our film is successful. As, for example, a thriller film without an enigma would be boring and the audience would not feel so involved, meaning they would be less effected in terms of heightened senses. 

From the very beginning of our film, we aim to create an enigma in the form of the briefcase. We will do this by taking close-up's of the woman picking up the briefcase, which will have been placed in an unknown area and collected by the character without having being given any dialogue. This will enable the audience to begin questioning the motive of the woman, why she has the briefcase, what is in the briefcase and where she is going. The creation of the enigma is essential in our film, as we plan to have no dialogue throughout and so the audience must remain interested without it. 

The use of quick cuts and obtrusive editing in our film will be critical, as we plan to film a woman being followed, and so "jumpy" editing will enable us to create the illusion that the woman is quickly being followed, not only by a member of the public but an expert. In addition, if the editing is fast-paced for someone being followed, it gives the idea that there is a "race against time" or that the matter is serious rather than leisurely. This creates suspense and also leads the audience to questioning where the character has to be, what they are doing and why they are being followed.

The use of over shoulder shots also create the illusion that someone is being followed, but also the idea that the person being followed does not realise this. This will be critical for our piece. As we aim to illustrate the idea that the woman does not know she is being followed, we will also use some handheld shots in order to create the idea that the person following her is doing so secretly, with motive. We will also use many close up's, which will be used to both determine the emotions being experienced by the woman while she is being followed, but also to reinforce the idea that the woman is being watched secretly, and so is a distance away.

However, we will also abuse the codes and conventions of a thriller in order to ensure that our piece is more modern and relevant to the ever changing media scene. Firstly, the idea that we are using a woman to be followed goes against typical stereotypes, as it would often be considered that a man was powerful, cautious and in control - rather than a woman. The woman will also be carrying a briefcase, an accessory which would stereotypically be associated with males.

We will represent the protagonist in our film opening, the woman, as strong and independent and an object of female aspiration rather than of male desire. We will do this in many ways, the first being the use of costume. As she will be wearing a smart outfit, including black trousers, a blazer, a classic up-do and immaculate makeup, the audience will view her as a successful, powerful woman, as the costume used will create the illusion of status and power. 

In addition, we plan to do all of our filming in daylight. This means no shadows, no dark alleyways... features often found in a thriller film. By doing this, we believe that it can, in some ways, create more suspense as the audience would not be so used to this format for a thriller, meaning their senses would be further heightened as they attempt to work out what should happen next. In addition, by filming in daylight around other people, the film will appear more realistic, and the woman carrying the suitcase will seem more suspicious and mysterious when surrounded by "normal" people in a "normal" area. This will engage the audience and make them further question the intentions of the woman. 

In conclusion, we are aiming to stick to the codes and conventions of the thriller in order to ensure that our thriller opening is successful, however, we also aim to go against some of the codes and conventions, such as having a strong, powerful man as the protagonist and filming in the dark using alleyways and shadows. By doing this, we believe that it makes our thriller opening more modern and up-to-date with the current media scene. This is essential as we do not want out film to look dated or irrelevant. 

Thriller Opening Analysis

Thriller opening analysis 

The Maltese Falcon

• Warner Bros
• Black and white
• Shadows
• Title and establishing shots at beginning
• Man rolling cigarette
• Woman dressed formally, a dress, hat etc.
• Woman asking for help from man
• Men smoking
• Urban city
• In a dark office
• Orchestral music - somber, sets a serious mood

This film noir opening is a stereotypical thriller opening, and does not challenge the codes and conventions of thrillers, as it sticks to what would be considered the classic codes and conventions of a thriller film. For example, there are many examples of shadows, dark rooms and orchestral music is used.

In addition, it includes typical stereotypes, such as men rolling cigarettes and smoking them and women wearing formal clothing, including dresses and hats. However, this could also be because the film is not as modern as other thriller openings that I have studied, as it was released in 1941.

We noticed that an enigma is created while the detective is talking to the woman in his office, as she asks them to track down a man she believes that her sister has ran away with. She adds that she has not talked to her sister for a considerable amount of time, leaving the audience to question where her sister is, why she ran away and if the man she has run away with had harmed her. This creates a question to be answered for the oncoming film.

Se7en 

• Dark room
• Ticking noise
• Background voices and noise when in quiet room.. as if these are someone's thoughts
• Shadows
• Strange music
• Photographs
• Obtrusive editing
• Quick cuts
• Flickering images
• Titles look "wonky" and as though they were hand written

This thriller opening uses many of the stereotypical codes and conventions of the thriller, such as the use of shadows, photographs and quick cuts. The opening creates an enigma, by showing the audience someone working, which would appear to be "evil" or simply negative, yet not revealing their identity. This therefore leads to the audience questioning who they are watching and why they are doing the things that they are doing. However, the opening does not use orchestral music as many other thriller openings do, the music included is low pitched "scratchy" noises, creating suspense. At the end of the opening, lyrical music is also played for a short time, this is done for effect as it becomes the climax to the suspense already created by the music prior to this.

The obtrusive editing and quick cuts used enable suspense to be built, as they make the audience feel claustrophobic and their attention is quickly drawn to the text as it is fast-moving and paced. This pace ensures that the audience remains interested and feels involved with the film, keeping them "on the edge of their seat", critical in a thriller. The use of flickering images is also interesting, as it brings negative connotations (something being faulty, not correct, broken, old) and therefore creates the idea that what you are watching is a negative act. This is later reinforced by the use of imagery.

"Parity" AS Media Thriller Opening

• Orchestral music
• Quick cuts - beginning from black screen to close up of face
• Flashbacks
• Titles fade in and out
• Titles in a font that appears "scratchy" or handwritten

This thriller opening, created by another AS Media class, uses many codes and conventions of the thriller. They have used orchestral music at the beginning, to create atmosphere when the close up of the face occurs. They have also used flashbacks, such as when the boy looks in the mirror, this gives the audience a further insight into what had previously happened, and if often designed to give information that doesn't "quite fit" in order to leave an air of mystery. 

We also notice that the titles both before and after the film fade in and out with a circular spotlight, drawing the viewers attention to the text. However, this could also have been done to imitate the sight of a gun, as although the murder weapon in the film is not a gun, the use of this sight has connotations of weaponry and danger as a result of being used in James Bond films. The idea that the titles also appear in a font that is scratchy and handwritten creates the idea that it is an intimate film, rather than being commercialised and digitalised. It also suits the genre of the thriller well as it promotes the idea that the film is dangerous but also mysterious.

In addition, we notice that the opening creates an enigma right at the end, with the only piece of dialogue included, "today I killed a man. Yesterday, a man was reborn". This enables the audience to question why he killed someone, why this made him feel "reborn" and also if he would do it again. This therefore is a successful thriller opening as it creates an enigma to be answered for the rest of the oncoming film.