Opening Scene Narration - Miss Miller

For our final narrative, both Kate and I used our individual storyboards and created one group storyboard that we were both happy with. We took ideas from each individual storyboard to incorporate into the final narrative that we believed to be the most conventional to the thriller genre as well as being the most successful in creating the crucial elements of surprise, shock, tension and suspense. We ensured that we used an equal amount of each other's ideas so as to make it fair and unbiased as well as changing some things to make sure our thriller sequence will be as successful as it can be and would be able to thrill our audience the most.

Our sequence will begin with a combination of both a POV shot and canted angle to show the hit man character slowly waking up from his unconscious state. The POV shot will be the first camera technique used within the sequence and we will aim to have this in and out of focus to represent the character waking up slowly and being confused. The canted angle will then be used to represent an element of disorientation as well as confusion. The use of iconography of the rope will be used to tie the hit man/hostage up as well as the masking tape covering his mouth. These camera shots work well together in order to set the scene of the entire sequence. We will also aim to include non diegetic sound of sinister music as well as the use of the editing style of flashes when the opening credits are being shown therefore an individual credit will be shown with the addition of a flash of an image of the hostage being tied up and slowly waking up etc. I think this will be effective within the sequence as it ensures that not too much of the narrative is revealed straight away. Low key lighting will be evident in the opening scene where we will include some flood lights to illuminate the hostage. The use of low key lighting within the unknown location at the beginning keeps the location hidden and it is unsure whether or not the hostage is alone or if his kidnapper is lurking somewhere.

Within the next frame, we also decided that two camera techniques should be used so we are able to use a variety of camera shots and not repeat the same techniques over and over again which would therefore make our thriller less exciting and would be something that the audience would not enjoy as much. The first technique we would be using within this frame is handheld which can be used to produce unsteady and jerky movements to represent elements of confusion and disorientation as well as providing a dramatic feel to the particular shot. Although this would be effective in our piece, it could also be unconventional as any unnecessary camera shakes could be evident therefore I will discuss with this with my partner and possibly take this camera technique out of the sequence and in particular this frame. A high angle shot will also be used within this frame to portray the hit man as weak and inferior due to being kidnapped and held hostage. The non diegetic sound of sinister music will be evident in this frame which will be gradually built in volume. The editing technique of flashes will also be continued within this frame so as to pass the pace of the scene.  Low key lighting will be present again within this frame to represent evil as well as keeping the location's identity hidden.

In the third frame, a close up will be used to highlight the confusion on the hit man/hostage's face. He will be portrayed as being completely clueless in order to show a true representation of an amnesiac. This close up will be the main clue to connote that he has developed amnesia and is no longer aware of who he is as a person as well as where he is and who had kidnapped him. We will aim to have the character's facial expressions showing fear, confusion and complete lack of awareness. Again, the low key lighting will be used to ensure the location is not identified until the very last moment. At this point within the sequence, the non diegetic sinister music will be at the peak of its volume.

The fourth frame captures the moment in which the antagonist walks in and addresses his hostage. We will use POV from the hostage's perspective in order to capture the exact moment in which the antagonist enters the room.The  first use of iconography within the opening will be an envelope in which ints contents will be revealed in the next frame. Within this frame, the flashes will be continued until the fifth frame which will signify the end of the opening credits. Again, low key lighting will be featured to hide what or more importantly who could be lurking which it becomes clear that the antagonist has been waiting to appear. The sinister music will have reached its crescendo at this point due to the reveal of the antagonist. Although the character as well as the audience are still unsure of his identity, they are now clear of who has kidnapped the hit man/hostage and events unfolding up until this point will be explained in the next few frames.

In the fifth frame, the audience will witness the antagonist explaining exactly what he wants his accomplice to do as well as what his reward will be. This frame will be the first in which speech will be used and it is made clear that the antagonist wants this hostage to kill his cheating wife. Although speech will be evident, we have decided to include sinister music again but at a low volume. The iconography of the envelope is revealed in this frame as the antagonist will be seen to open the envelope showing the large amount of money he is offering for the hit man to kill his wife as well as containing some photographs of her so that the hit man knows exactly who to kill due to having amnesia. An editing style of a straight cut will be used to maintain continuity throughout the sequence.

Moving onto the next frame, the hit man is seen to be paid by the antagonist as well as being shown the photographs in  more detail ensuring that he knows to kill this woman before agreeing with no hesitation to kill her. This situation will be shown with an over the shoulder shot of the antagonist so as to keep his identity hidden as well as capturing the reaction of the hit man/hostage to his demands. Although it is not a close up, menacing facial expressions will still be seen on the hit man's face to show how he has been manipulated by the antagonist to something that is completely psychotic. Silence will be used in this scene for dramatic effect. The editing technique of shot reverse shot will be used to represent the occurrence of a conversation taking place switching between the hit man and antagonist and especially capturing the hit man when he agrees to carrying out the murder.

The seventh frame will demonstrate the antagonist being asked by the hit man how he is supposed to get hold of weapons to murder the wife in which his antagonist replies to this by looking at him closely and smiling menacingly. Speech will again be used however it will be used in a smaller section of dialogue due to only featuring the simple question of how the hit man is supposed to get his hands on particular weapons to murder the antagonist's wife. A mid shot will be used in order to capture the hit man's facial expressions and also showing some of his body language.

Following on from this, the next frame will feature the exchange of the murder weapon, house keys and the address of where the hit man needs to go. The iconography will be a knife, the house keys and house address written on a note. This will be achieved by the use of shallow focus to place emphasis on the objects being exchanged which will be supported by a jump cut to direct attention onto what is happening in this particular frame connoting a significance to the narrative.

In the ninth frame, a long shot will be used to show the hit man leaving the unknown location and attempting to gather his bearings on his way to murder the antagonist's wife. Again, the use of non diegetic sound being sinister music will be played over this image and the hit man will now have on his person; the envelope containing the money and photographs, house keys, address and knife. As this frame will be shot outside, the lighting will still remain low key but will be more natural showing a more realistic scene and change of setting.

The camera will then zoom in and change into a mid shot in the tenth frame which shows the hit man giving up on being able to gather his surroundings on his own and he reaches into his pocket and takes out his phone. Non diegetic sounds of distant screaming will be edited into this frame and the iconography will be identical to the previous frame but with the addition of the mobile phone.

This camera technique will zoom in even further into a close up shot where the hit man is seen to dial a number and make a call to a taxi company to take him to the murder location. Silence will be the main sound technique evident within this frame with the inclusion of speech of the hit man talking on the phone.  Also, the lighting will be kept low key and dark with the exclusion of the street lights providing as filler lights.

The twelfth frame marks the halfway point of our opening sequence. Within this, the hit man will be seen walking up to the house. The iconography of the keys will be shown as the character will be holding them in his hand preparing to put them into the lock of the front door. Non diegetic sound will again be used through the example of sinister music to build up tension and imply that something bad is about to happen. The low key lighting will also be continued throughout this frame as it is the same location. This will be shown through a POV shot to capture from the hit man's perspective the approach to the house.

In the next frame, Kate and I will show through a POV shot again images of the hit man letting himself in using the keys given to him by the antagonist and entering the house. The iconography of the keys will again be continued so that the audience are fully aware of how the hit man has managed to gain entry to the house without raising any suspicion. The sinister music will be built up in volume to again imply that something big and significant within the narrative is about to happen. The lighting will be low key as well as realistic to show that the new setting is natural and is somewhere that the audience will be able to relate to immediately.

The next shot we will use is an over the shoulder shot to demonstrate how the hit man is slowly approaching the victim without her knowing that someone is behind her. Iconography of the knife will be presented where the hit man is seen to hold the knife by his side as he approaches the antagonist's wife implying a murder is about to take place. Parallel sound of sinister music will again be played over this image to support what the audience are seeing on screen. Continuity editing will be evident in this frame to establish a coherence between two shots so that the audience don't get too confused of what is going on.

Leading on from this, the next frame will show the hit man raising the knife ready to murder his victim. A long shot will be used for this particular point within the narrative so as to be able to show the audience everything that is happening within the frame. At this point, the sinister music will be at his maximum volume as the murder seems imminent at this specific moment within the sequence. The editing technique of a jump cut will be used to divert the audience's attention onto this image so they are made aware that this is the moment the sequence has been leading up to. Again, iconography of the knife will be shown as the hit man prepares to kill the antagonist's wife. Low key lighting will also be continued to maintain a sinister and tense atmosphere.

Within the sixteenth frame, the audience witness the wife turning around, seeing her attacker and screaming while dropping the plate she was clearing away. Timing of shots will be used to focus upon the smashing of the plate in which this image will be edited together slowly and sped up at the very end when the plate smashes. A reaction shot will also be evident to show the victim's reaction to finding someone in her house with a knife. Furthermore, diegetic sounds of the plate smashing and screaming will be used to provide a realistic feel to the scene. Iconography will be the same as in the previous frame but with the addition of the plate. Also, low key lighting will again be used for dramatic effect as stated in previous frame.

The next frame will include the image of the hit man grabbing his victim and pulling the knife close to her body. The iconography of the knife will again be present as well as my group and I deciding to include the diegetic sound of screaming which could also act as an example of parallel sound as this matches the type of image the audience will see on screen. This will be used to create tension. The lighting will again be low key to capture the mood of the scene and the camera shot we will use for this particular frame will be a zoom in to capture facial expressions and body language. 

Following on from this, frame eighteen will see the narrative take a twist as the victim is stabbed multiple times by the hit man. The sound used will again be diegetic with the woman screaming but an addition of non diegetic sound of the knife stabbing will also be included to make the scene more realistic. Timing of shots will be the editing technique evident within this frame where the clips will be edited together quickly to pass the pace of the scene as well as creating surprise and tension. A zoom out shot will be used for this scene to make the audience aware of everything going on within the scene. 

Furthermore, the next frame sees a shallow focus shot being used to place emphasis and focus the audience's attention on the female victim's dead body on the ground covered in blood. This shot will also be shot at a high angle to show that the victim is weak and inferior due to being killed. Silence will be used for dramatic effect and to signify the end of the woman's life due to her screaming abruptly falling silent. Kuleshov effect will be evident as the audience will be able to see the previous image of the woman being stabbed and this next image of her body where they will gather the idea that the murder has just taken place. Low key lighting is again continued within this frame to maintain a tense and sinister atmosphere. 

Within frame twenty. the audience will see the hit man calling up the antagonist to tell him that the deed is done and that his wife is now dead. A mid shot will be used for this particular frame so as to capture body language and facial expressions of the hit man in the aftermath of the murder that has just occurred. The editing style we have decided to use in this is linking of sections so that the audience are aware that this has significance to previous images. Diegetic sounds of speech will also be used to capture the exchange between hit man and antagonist however the antagonist's reply on the other end may need to be edited in after the filming stage.

In the next frame, as the sequence nears its end, the audience will witness through the use of an over the shoulder shot the arrival of the antagonist at the murder scene. Non diegetic sound of the closing music will start to be played so as to connote that the sequence is almost at an end. Iconography will include the antagonist's set of house keys as the front door is opened and again, the blood bath is shown. A montage will be evident as a bunch of clips will be edited together to form this scene at this particular point within the sequence.

Frame twenty two sees the hit man sitting with his head in his hands appearing to question what he has done and appears to be extremely guilty and sympathetic. This shows straight away that the hit man had been forced into the situation and i turns out that he isn't a cold blooded killer after all. We will achieve this effect through the use of a high angle shot to portray him as being almost like a victim where it is revealed that the antagonist is the true bad guy within the sequence. Non diegetic sound of screaming and voices will be used to represent the hit man going insane and this will be added with blurred images. 

The twenty third frame shows both the hit man and antagonist exchanging a firm hand shake before the hit man is seen to leave the location. The non diegetic sound of the closing music will again be evident in this frame as it is the second to last frame. There will be no iconography or editing within this frame and is a simple image before the antagonist is left alone with the body of his dead wife. This will be shown through a two shot due to both characters being visible within the frame. 

Within the final frame, a zoom in will again be evident which captures the antagonist standing over his dead wife smiling menacingly before looking directly into the camera, taking off his mask which has been hiding his identity and revealing himself to the audience. This frame will be shown in the location of the antagonist and his wife's family home which they share together. The non diegetic sound of the closing music will be played over this image at a maximum volume so as to imply that this is the final frame within the sequence. After the antagonist has revealed his identity to the audience and stared directly into the camera a fade out will be used where the screen will fade to black to show that the sequence has now ended. 

This has helped finalise our group ideas as both mine and Kate's ideas have been able to come together to form one final idea of what the sequence will be like as well as creating a successful thriller sequence. It has also helped us to understand how much preparation goes into creating a thriller and also knowing what to include within each frame and knowing how each would look regarding the micro elements. As a group, we also know how we want our locations to look like and what actors will be shown in which specific roles which creates a general idea of what our opening sequence will appear as a whole.

Planning Characters - Miss Miller

The purpose of characters within a film is so that the narrative can be driven forward through the function of each character's roles, the use of characters help to tell the story behind the film. They can also be used to create definite relationships with the audience in order for them to gain a profound interest in the narrative therefore encouraging them to watch on further to see what will happen next. Representation of characters within a film is crucial as this can show the audience what gender and age they are as well as their backgrounds such as profession. Representation of characters can also suggest which era a film is set in through the use of the character's clothing and makeup. Characters are significant within a media piece as they way that they are represented is the way in which the audience will view them within the film.

Within our thriller sequence, there will be three characters, two of these being the main characters (hit man and antagonist) and two being minor characters (female victim). These characters will be introduced below:

The first character I will be discussing is the main character within the narrative which is the hit man and he will be called Mark although his name will never be mentioned therefore his background will remain unknown to the audience as well as the events prior to the beginning of the sequence in which he is kidnapped and left in an unknown location sparking an enigma straight away. Both Kate and I have decided to portray this character as being around the age of 21 and his race being White British. The sequence unveils hidden events and it is revealed that the unknown antagonist wants Mark to kill his wife after finding out that she had been having an affair. An envelope is left in front of him which becomes clear to him when Mark receives an anonymous text message explaining everything. The audience find out that the envelope contains photos of the antagonist's wife as well as the knife which will be required to kill the female and house keys so he is able to gain entry without raising too much suspicion. This character's function within the narrative is to help confuse the audience and take their focus away from the antagonist in order to create a ,maximum amount of tension within the inclusion of a major plot twist to excite viewers and encourage them to watch the entire sequence. We will see the hit man developing amnesia prior to waking up from his unconscious state which will be indicated through the hit man's body language as he will come across as very confused as to where he is. Viewers will also notice that there was some signs of a struggle before the sequence starts as this character wakes up with blood dripping down his face. This would cause the audience to feel some sympathy from him as he had been kidnapped and left in an abandoned location and it is unclear what will happen to him but also hatred and anger as he appears to be willing to kill for someone who he potentially doesn't know that well. He is also used to create an enigma within the narrative as it is left unclear why the wife is needed to be killed as well as driving the audience to believe that he is the true antagonist.

The next character which will be featured within my thriller opening sequence is Cole, who is our main antagonist, known only on a text message as 'C' to create suspense and cause the audience to wonder who he could be. Cole's age and race are left unknown as well as his identity due to the audience never seeing him in person but are only made aware of his presence because of messages sent before and after the killing to Mark, which is shown on screen. The audience will never see any insight into Cole's past or the reason behind him wanting someone to kill his wife for him. However, from this, we can gather that the antagonist's state of mentality is not completely stable due to hiring someone he has never met before to kill his own wife out of cold blood which could derive from a negative experience in his past however individual perceptions are the only factors contributing to knowing a little more about this particular character's background. The audience are expected to react to this character in a clearly negative way. This is because of his bloody past and they will witness his insanity getting the better of him and embarking on a murderous rampage later on in the film however this will not be able to be derived from the opening 2 minutes. He will make viewers feel uncomfortable and will be solely responsible for all the negative emotions evoked from the audience throughout the duration of the sequence. This creates a great amount of shock when they witness a text from him to Mark stating clearly "Well done, your reward awaits." which can also be used to create suspense as they are unsure whether the antagonist may decide to show himself at an unexpected time within the sequence. When his identity is revealed, this will create confusion within the audience as we will portray the hit man being the antagonist up until the exact moment in which the true antagonist finds his wife dead.


The third and final character within my thriller will be the antagonist's wife. This character will be included to portray her as a female victim which is a main convention of thriller films. Everything about this character including name, age, race and background will remain unknown as she is only featured briefly when she is murdered by the hit man. She could be used to evoke empathy from the audience as although she has done something completely unforgivable, she didn't deserve to die out of cold blood. She is first seen when a picture of her is found in an envelope which has been left by the antagonist for the hit man to find so that he is aware of who he needs to kill and is seen again in the murder scene where the hit man turns up at the home she shares with her husband. This character will appeal to the audience as she is the female victim. Immediately, the audience know to feel sympathy towards her as she is seen to be murdered brutally in the 'safety' of her own home as well as knowing that she didn't deserve to die in this way regardless of what she may have done. Due to her untimely death, this helps to create a relationship between this character and the audience as they immediately obtain an emotional connection with her. Within the thriller genre, a female character is usually always portrayed as the victim and are always the first to die which will therefore make the hit man's job a lot easier when entering the home to know exactly who his victim is.

Group Storyboard - Miss Miller

The importance and creation of a group narrative is to consider everyone's ideas and incorporate the best in order to produce the best possible thriller therefore appealing to our target audience more. By creating a group narrative, this means that the group can input ideas and change them to make the opening sequence better and more thrilling. It also means that we can change ideas as a group if we are unsure that they are conventional to the thriller genre. The group are also given the opportunity to analyse whether or not they are completely happy with the final narrative idea by the input of several different ideas and choose specific ideas for the group narrative to make our sequence more enjoyable for the target audience as well as creating a successful thriller. This also allows the group to have a full understanding of what is happening with the narrative within the planning stages. Kate and I looked at one another's individual storyboards and carefully considered each element and feature evident within these and begin to think of what ideas we liked best to create a group storyboard. As a group, we decided which camera shots were most effective within each frame which helped us in creating a storyboard that we were both happy with and one which we believed would aid us in creating the most successful thriller that we possibly can. Also, as a group, we made some changes to our narrative as it could get too confusing at specific points and therefore altered these frames in order to create a sequence which would be much more conventional to the thriller genre.

This is the first page of our group storyboard. Although we haven't included pictures yet, we have thought carefully about the other elements which will be present within the scene such as camera shots and editing techniques. As Kate and I had similar ideas of having an editing style of flashes at the beginning of the sequence, we decided to incorporate our individual ideas of camera angles into this group storyboard. For example, within the first frame, my individual storyboard had the idea of using canted angle to represent disorientation whereas Kate had the idea of a Point of View shot therefore we decided to use them both at the beginning where we would switch between the two cinematography techniques. This helps to create tension within the audience as it helps to set the scene and suggest that they are watching a thriller film due to our hit man character waking up after being in an unconscious state in a location which is completely unknown to him and is clearly confused. This idea is also conventional to the thriller genre as it helps to create a tense atmosphere making the audience wonder what could happen to this particular character as well as making viewers feel completely on edge early on in the sequence which would unwillingly encourage them to watch further to see what could possibly happen next. The POV shot is also very effective for this particular scene as it helps to create an idea of vulnerability due to the audience only being able to see what the character is seeing within the scene and are therefore left unaware of who could be lurking whether the person who kidnapped the hit man is coming to get him. It also helps to create a relationship as the audience are allowed to feel exact same emotions as the hit man and are therefore immediately emotionally connected with this particular character. In frame 3, we again decided to use both of our ideas in one so as to be able to create even more tension within our target audience. The fact a Close Up will be used to emphasise the hit man's emotions will help to present the psychological theme of amnesia to the audience and allow them to understand why this theme has been included. This idea is conventional to the thriller genre as it can be used to create an enigma for the rest of the narrative to be driven upon this which creates tension as the audience are left wondering what could have been done to this character for him to develop amnesia and that his kidnapper could have possibly done this to him as well as encouraging them to watch the entire sequence so they are able to uncover the mysteries behind the narrative as well as creating individual perceptions of what they think may happen. Kate also had the idea of using an unknown location for the hit man to wake up to which I thought was very effective as it helps to create confusion and prompt viewers to think about where he could be and what could happen. This inspiration came from the film 'The Purge' in the scene where the daughter is held hostage by a man who had made his way into the home. Although the location is presented to the audience, we liked the idea of a hostage situation as we felt that this created a large amount of tension. We wanted to use a similar idea in our opening sequence to create a sinister and thrilling atmosphere. By having this at the beginning of our sequence, I think that this would help to set the scene straight away as well as throwing the audience straight into the narrative without wasting any time. This also helps to not give too much away to the viewers and allow them to consider individually what could have happened. Kate and I had similar ideas to the lighting style being low key due to this being used in most thriller films and we believe this is the most conventional type of lighting to use within our sequence. This inspiration derived from many analysed thriller films such as The Strangers and Mama.

Here is the second page of our group storyboard. Again, this page used both mine and Kate's ideas as we both thought that some ideas we came up worked well at later points within the sequence rather than at this point. In these 4 frames, the audience witness the unidentified antagonist explaining what his accomplice needs to do, the hit man then agreeing and being paid before the antagonist providing him with many objects which will be most beneficial to him when carrying out the murder. These include; the murder weapon - a knife, house keys, address. The envelope containing the hit man's money will also feature photographs of the woman so that he knows exactly who to kill. These pictures will be positioned on top of the envelope in order to clearly show this to the audience in a way that they won't get confused. In frame 8, my idea of using shallow focus when all of the objects are being exchanged was chosen to be in the final narrative as my partner agreed this would be the most effective. We chose to use this as it sets the scene of a thriller film as well as showing the audience what the hit man needs to do therefore demonstrating our narrative further. This would also cause intrigue within viewers as they could wonder why the antagonist is hiring someone to kill this woman as well as why the hit man had been placed in a hostage situation which then becomes clear this is to force him into carrying out this murder for him. The iconography of the knife would also create shock and surprise within the audience but could act as an example of foreshadowing therefore suggesting that a death or murder is extremely likely to take place later on in the sequence. Iconography is shown in a majority of thriller films through the use of weapons. As a group, we gained this inspiration from the film Halloween in which the murderer is seen grabbing a knife from the kitchen drawer of which he uses to kill his victim. This has inspired us to also include the murder weapon being a knife as the use of the blade connotes the element of danger and implies that someone's life is going to end. By using this idea within our storyboard, it means that the audience will feel intrigued as to when the murder may take place and gaining a more in depth knowledge of the narrative as it progresses further.

This is the third page of our group storyboard. On this page, it captures the moments leading up to the death of the female victim (antagonist's wife) where the hit man leaves the unknown location, phones for a taxi where he gives the driver the address due to not knowing where or who he is because of the amnesia and the final frame shows the hit man walking towards the house in which he will murder his victim. This page was Kate's idea. We decided to incorporate this into our group storyboard as it was much more clearer to the audience than having the hit man walk into a random house and kill whoever was in there. This idea will help to create tension within our thriller sequence as everyone but the victim is aware that a killer is just about to walk into her house and brutally cut her life short. This also suggests an idea of vulnerability due to not knowing her fate, when the taxi driver is given the address, he is asked to stop short of the house so as not to raise suspicion. This implies that something bad is going to happen due to the hit man not wanting to be seen and creates suspense as well as providing a sinister and tense atmosphere to the scene. Within these frames, the main uses of sound will be non diegetic/parallel sounds of sinister music and some screaming which will help to evoke a response from the audience after seeing the images on screen. The support of the sound and images complementing each other means that a maximum amount of suspense can be created in order to create shock and surprise when the actual murder takes place because of the build up to it. This sound technique has been used to imply that the killer is overpowering and more superior in comparison to his unsuspecting victim. Although no editing techniques have been used on the storyboard, I believe that linking of section should be used to create tension and make the audience more engaged within the film and they begin to feel sympathy towards the antagonist's wife due to it becoming clear that she is the one who is about to be murdered.



This is the fourth page of our group storyboard which documents the beginning of the murder scene which will be the most dramatic point within our opening sequence. The antagonist is seen to be sneaking up on his victim while she is washing up, she then sees slight movement and turns around, upon seeing her attacker with the knife she screams and drops the plate she was holding. This idea came from Kate's individual storyboard as she had to change the entire narrative. We decided to use this idea in our group storyboard as it helps to capture the last moments in which the victim is to be seen alive. The use of the plate smashing has been included to represent the unstable mentality state of the hit man as he has agreed to killing a woman he doesn't know in exchange for money which is not something a person of stable state of mind would do. By using this within our final idea, this allows the audience to build a relationship with the victim as they feel sympathy towards her due to being the target of a hit man regardless of what she may have done to her husband. We have decided to use non diegetic and diegetic sounds of sinister music to build up to the moment in which the victim realises someone is behind her as well as the sound of her screaming and the plate smashing on the floor. This creates a more realistic scene and makes the audience believe that they are watching something which could possibly happen in reality. The diegetic sound of the plate smashing also creates a more sinister atmosphere as the sound of the china sounds very sharp and dangerous suggesting the fact that the infliction of pain and injury is about to occur. This also foreshadows events about to unfold within the sequence. Diegetic sound is commonly used in thriller films such as Scream and Insidious to create suspense. We derived our inspiration for this idea from these films as it makes the scene more natural and therefore engages the audience more.

This is the fifth page of our group storyboard and captures the moment in which the female victim is stabbed and killed by the hit man. The hit man holds the knife high as he grabs the female victim, stabs her multiple times until she stops screaming. Her body is then shown and this page ends with the hit man calling the antagonist telling him that the deed is done. Again, this was partly my idea and partly Kate's, I thought of how the victim was to be killed whereas Kate thought about the use of a phone call after the murder has taken place.These two ideas have been used in our storyboard as we feel that they both create tension within the audience as well as shock at the fact that the woman has been murdered in such a cold blooded way. It also helps to show the audience exactly what the hit man is capable of doing for money which is very sinister. The audience are immediately threatened by the hit man having just witnessed him murder a young woman in a vile and brutal manner. Silence is used in the aftermath of the murder when the body is shown which is effective at this point within the sequence as it is used to show how someone's life has been taken away; one minute she was breathing and screaming, the next she is lying motionless on the floor. This is a very scary aspect and shows the audience just how easily the life can be taken out of someone so quickly which would also create an element of surprise here as, although a murder was expected, they were unsure of how brutal it would be. We gained this inspiration from the film Scream in the scene in which the woman walks up to the curtain in her home and the killer suddenly jumps out on her. This creates a dramatic effect and signifies that there is no life left within the scene.

This is the final page of our group storyboard which implies that the sequence is coming to an end. It shows the antagonist approaching the murder scene and congratulating his accomplice on his good work before sending him away and standing over his wife's dead body before looking straight into the camera signifying the end of our thriller opening. I had the idea of the last frame whereas Kate thought of frame numbers 21, 22 and 23. My idea was to have the antagonist stand over his wife's body, take the mask off therefore revealing his identity and looking straight into the camera before a fade out will be used. By using both of our ideas in the final part of our sequence, this means that we are able to create as thrilling a sequence as possible therefore appealing more to our target audience as they are constantly left on the edge of their seats while watching. The enigma is revealed through the reveal of the antagonist's idea which is conventional to the thriller genre as it helps to create shock and surprise within the audience due to the antagonist possibly being someone that they would never have expected. Although this means that there would be no space to further the enigma and keep the audience guessing, it still creates a dramatic effect as it allows for the antagonist to be able to carry on killing and could also suggest a possible sequence. We took this inspiration from Halloween where the identity of Michael Myers being the killer was revealed within the opening sequence of the first film and then allowing him to kill where the franchise reached a total of 10 films. Although it is not stated, fast paced editing with the addition of non diegetic of tense closing music will be used to create instability and represent that the hit man has got to the victim as well as the antagonist seeing his wife has been killed. This inspiration was taken from the film Shutter Island where the two police officers are fighting a patient at the mental hospital they are investigating. Fast paced editing can be used to represent a scene of chaos as well as showing that the victim will always be inferior to their killer. We added this to create a similar effect and that the victim's life has come to an abrupt end after all the build up. This also creates an idea of vulnerability as well as showing the victim had no way of escape. This makes it easier for the killer to get to her and creates a much more sinister and tense atmosphere.

To conclude, I think that our group storyboard follows the conventions of a thriller film closely as it creates relative elements of shock, tension, surprise and suspense for the audience. Our storyboard also features a lot of 'jumpy' and climatic scenes which is the main aim Kate and I wanted for our opening sequence. It builds up tension and suspense and keeps the audience wondering what could happen next. An enigma is created throughout the duration of the sequence and is elevated to appropriate levels of suspense and the storyboard helps us to know exactly what to do when we are filming. It helps us to understand what will be happening in each individual frame and what elements are going to be used. Our group storyboard is of a good standard as it considers both Kate's and my ideas and we are both happy with what order the frames are to appear in and the different camera, sound and editing techniques used. We managed to successfully incorporate both of our ideas into the group storyboard by carefully analysing one another's individual storyboards and lifting the best ideas from each to create the most conventional and thrilling sequence. We also decided what we thought would look best in the sequence as a whole and what order the frames should appear in. This helped us in incorporating both of our ideas into the storyboard as we both had our own opinions and were able to justify ourselves when considering which ideas would make the sequence most conventional and thrilling for the audience. We had to come to some compromises when planning the narrative due to having to change it. This was the only compromise we had to make and now see that our original narrative would have confused the audience too much and they would therefore not enjoy it as much. I think that overall, our storyboard is good although I would add in a few more editing techniques in some frames where there are none stated. For example, linking of section and Kuleshov effect.

Risk Assessment - Miss Georgiou

Risk assessments are created and carried out whilst still in the planning stage before filming has taken place and are important because they identify possible risks so as to ensure the location etc. is safe for all those involved such as the actors as well as the crew. A risk assessment is devised of identifying potential risks which could go wrong during the creation of the thriller, analysing the possible dangers such as impact on those involved and evaluating how exactly these dangers will be resolved as well as considering a backup plan if the hazards cannot be avoided.


During the planning stage of our thriller opening sequence, we constructed a risk assessment to ensure all those involved within our film are kept as safe as possible. My risk assessment can be seen below:

When filming, we encountered no major risks which was a positive outcome as we ensured to remain safe at all times due to the nature of the thriller sequence. Our main concern for the filming was that a major injury could occur as we used a real knife and not a fake one, we told our actor who would be using the knife clearly to make sure the knife didn't come anywhere near the female actor's body so she was not accidentally stabbed. Having said this, the knife caught the actor a little as her top was torn in the scene in which the hit man grabs the victim and prepares to slice her throat. In order to avoid this from happening when re filming, we will ensure that the knife is nowhere near the body when the hit man has to grab his victim while she is washing up. When filming next time, we will ensure that we are more careful during the murder scene when using the knife by making sure that the knife is at a safe distance to the body but isn't too obvious to the camera as we would still want to achieve a realistic effect. When cutting the female victim's throat, we will brief the actor beforehand so that he knows to make the slicing motion in which makeup will be applied in between shots to achieve the sense of realism as well as making sure the knife doesn't come into any contact with the throat. Kate and I will both set about using the tripod more by setting it up on a counter or floor during the murder scene and discuss constantly what we want the shot to look like so we are not confused about what we are filming.

I have learnt that the role of a risk assessment is important when filming as it is never certain that something will go wrong so therefore there will need to be precautions already put in place should any unexpected accidents occur. This will then help to resolve the issue quickly and easily so as not to waste any valuable filming time.

Individual Storyboard - Miss Miller

The importance of using a storyboard when planning for the creation of a production is that no unnecessary time is wasted thinking of what techniques to use. It helps you when filming as you have a profound knowledge of which scene is to come next and also brings all of the ideas together. By using a storyboard, this shows that your group are efficient and carefully considering each individual camera shot and that you are planning well ahead. This also helps to be able to give input to your group and find a way in order to incorporate everyone's ideas into the final narrative. The importance of a storyboard enables you to feedback different ideas you may have. For example, you could have a completely different idea of which camera angle to use within the murder scene therefore the planning of a storyboard helps you to draw up your individual ideas that could make the thriller as successful as possible. It also helps to make it clearer what exactly is happening within each frame.

I have created an individual storyboard within my group so as to form my own ideas of what camera angles, editing and sound techniques to use in order to create the maximum amount of suspense and tension as well as creating key elements of shock and surprise for my audience to encourage them to watch the entire sequence. My partner Kate also created her individual storyboard which has been done so that we can come together and feed back our ideas to one another to try and piece together a final narrative using some ideas from myself and some ideas from Kate so that our thriller opening sequence will be as engaging and thrilling as it possibly could be. By creating a storyboard, this will allow me to see a visual guide as to what my thriller would look like and what would be happening in each scene of the sequence. It will also allow me to identify anomalies within the opening and rectify these in order to make my thriller more conventional to the genre or to add in extra details to improve the mood within the scenes therefore creating a more thrilling atmosphere for my target audience. Within my storyboard, I have included several frames showing me exactly what will appear in each shot while also considering the different camera angles, editing & sound techniques, lighting, actors, iconography and locations which will also be featured. This way, I am thinking about the scene as a whole and helping to build a structure for each frame so that I am able to film with ease and with no problems as I know exactly what each element will create for the audience. This makes it easier for my group and I when we begin filming our thriller opening as we know straight away what shots to use etc. therefore reducing time wasted as my group won't have to decide what techniques to use due to having them already carefully planned out.

My storyboard is devised of images of what I want each individual frame to look like. I used inspirations from previously analysed thriller films which helped me greatly in creating my storyboard and having a profound knowledge of what to include in order to make the scene conventional.

This is the first page of my storyboard. It shows how the opening sequence is going to begin and what the audience will first witness when beginning to watch. On my first page, I have the hit man (hostage) waking up in an unknown location and discovering that he is tied up and has masking tape covering his mouth. Throughout the first couple of shots, I have aimed to use low key lighting with the exception of some possible flood lights to represent a cold atmosphere relating to the mood of the scene. This type of lighting will also help to suggest to the audience that they are watching a thriller film. The first shot helps to engage viewers and create elements of tension as they are unsure of how the man could have got to where he is and what may happen to him. This will also help to create a relationship between the audience and the character as they immediately feel empathy towards him due to seeing images of him laying on the floor tied up and obviously scared. These restraints also help to suggest possible vulnerability of the hit man which misleads the audience as the hit man will turn out to become a murderer later on in the sequence which evidently helps to create suspense even further. The first 4 shots also use the same type of lighting and individually focus on something such as the antagonist entering the room and it becomes clear that the hit man is needed to do something for him. The 3rd shot focuses solely on the hit man's facial expressions, combined with the camera shot and sound techniques, this will help to display our psychological theme which is present in the sequence where the hit man has suffered from amnesia and is no longer aware of who he is. Sinister music and distant screaming will be played over the top of these images to represent the antagonist being near.

The next page shows how this scene will progress and intensify throughout the duration of the sequence. Low key lighting is again used throughout as the scene remains in the same location and this lighting is ideal for creating tension as the audience wonder what the antagonist could possibly want from the man. The next shots help the audience to gain an understanding of what he is needed and it soon becomes clear that the antagonist wants him to kill his cheating wife in order to teach her a lesson. This immediately creates an element of shock from viewers as the hit man is willing to kill straight away with no thought whatsoever. This also creates a relationship between the audience and the antagonist's wife as everyone but her is aware of what is about to happen. The iconography within this scene are the the murder weapon, an envelope containing photographs and money as well as house keys for the hit man to freely enter the house and the address of where he needs to go. I have decided to use a knife as a murder weapon, taken from inspirations of Halloween and Scream as both these films used a knife to inflict injury upon the victims and is conventional to the thriller genre. This also acts as an example of foreshadowing due to the audience now knowing that a death is extremely likely to occur which helps to prolong suspense as they are left unaware of the exact moment in which the hit man will strike. The sound used will be sinister music gradually building in volume until the scene where the antagonist is shown to be giving all the items to the hit man needed for his murder to be carried out. I have decided to build the music up gradually so as to create suspense within the audience and allow their emotions to be heightened significantly when watching the sequence. An enigma is also created to help the audience to wonder what could possibly happen next.

The next four shots within my storyboard capture the moments leading up to the antagonist's wife's death where the hit man is on his way to kill her. Low key lighting is also kept throughout but will be naturalistic also as these scenes will be filmed outside therefore this change in setting will help to set a new mood to the scene. Within the shot where the audience witness the hit man making a phone call for a taxi to transport him to his murder location, some speech will be used but the sound of silence will be heard all around to connote that the wife's life is about to come to an abrupt end. As the address is given to the taxi driver, the hit man also asks that he is dropped off down the street so as not to raise suspicion in order for the hit man to be able to slip into the house unnoticed and kill his unsuspecting victim with no one to witness it. This is conventional to a thriller as the killer is usually never caught until the very end and is therefore free to kill again and allowing for the enigma to be extended further. The non-diegetic sinister music will be played continuously and cut sharply when the hit man approaches the front door of his victim's home so as to create tension and signify that his victim's life is about to be cut short.

These shots show what will be happening in the middle of the sequence which is the climax of the entire opening as it features the indefinite murder scene. The non diegetic music played over the scene will again be increased in volume as the audience see the hit man approaching slowly behind his victim and preparing to kill her. This creates a large amount of suspense within the audience as the victim is left unaware of her fate up until the last moment in which she is seen alive. This sound can be used to foreshadow her very near death and suggest that although her killer has not made contact yet, the hit man is still empowering her shown through the use of the victim being completely oblivious to what is about to happen. This also helps to provide the victim with a sense of vulnerability as she is completely alone in the house therefore making it easier for her killer to murder her.  In the 4th frame, the victim turns around and screams at the sight of the knife and drops the plate she is holding causing it to smash on the floor. The editing used will be a reaction shot which will be shown when the woman is screaming and focus will also be placed on the smashing of the plate to represent that the mentality of the hit man is completely unstable and fragile. This will have an immediate impact on the audience as they feel empathy towards the victim as, no matter what she has done to her husband, she still doesn't deserve to die in such a brutal and gruesome way. I have chosen to use this within my storyboard as by feeling sympathetic towards the victim, this allows for the audience to obtain an emotional attachment to her which would keep them engaged in what they are watching. I gained inspiration from Halloween to include a POV shot to show the hit man entering the house which helps to put the audience into his shoes and experience the same emotions and see the same things as the hit man which creates tension and also keeps viewers hooked on the narrative.

The next four shots help to demonstrate the period in which the victim is fatally stabbed and murdered by the hit man. The hit man is seen to completely overpower her shown by the simple use of grabbing her with his knife in position where he then stabs the woman repeatedly until she is dead and drops her onto the floor with no remorse. In the exact scene where she is killed, I decided to use a zoom out as it creates emotional distance between the scene and the audience helping to evoke a suitable response from them as they try to get their heads around what they are watching unfold. An editing technique I have decided to use within this is the Kuleshov effect. This will be shown when the audience first see a glimpse of the victim's dead body lied on the floor covered in blood in unison with the previous shot seen where the shadow of the hit man is seen stabbing and the sound of the victim's screams are gradually reduced until there is complete silence once again. This editing style helps to show two shots which both have an implied meaning without having the show the actual murder taking place. This helps the audience to create individual perceptions of what they think might happen to the victim. As the setting has changed within the scene, more naturalistic and high key lighting will be used to represent the transition in location as well as making the sequence seem more realistic causing the audience to feel more heightened emotions as well as creating maximum amounts of suspense and tension with the inclusion of shock and surprise due to the audience not expecting the murder to be so brutal and in such cold blood. Linking of section will also be evident within this scene when the hit man makes the phone call to let the antagonist know that the deed has been done which links back to the opening scenes where he is first asked to kill her. The impact of silence within the scene will have a profound effect on the audience as they have just witnessed a brutal murder and will therefore be engaged as they watch on further to see what could possibly happen next.

The last page of my storyboard helps to highlight that my sequence is coming to an end. It shows the antagonist coming to inspect the murder scene in person. After seeing it and being pleased with what the hit man has done, an image is shown where the hit man sits on the stairs rethinking about what he has just done which helps to portray some innocence as the antagonist had brought the hit man into this situation threatening to hurt him if he did not carry it out. This also helps to emphasise that the hit man shouldn't be considered as the antagonist by the audience and that they should feel some sympathy towards him. The last shot consists of the antagonist standing over the body of his dead wife and taking off his mask therefore revealing his identity to the audience. He smiles in a sinister way at the body and then directs this straight to the camera and the audience before the screen fades to black signifying the end of the sequence. A montage is used in these last few shots as the various clips of the antagonist coming to the murder scene, shaking hands with the hit man congratulating him as well as his scene where he is full of guilt are edited together with the addition of sinister music representing that the sequence is nearing its end. This helps to create suspense within viewers as the antagonist is portrayed as being threatening towards the audience due to the way he is smiling at his wife's dead body. This also helps to show that the antagonist's state of mentality is completely unstable and that he is in fact a complete psychopath and the use of the fade out at the end connotes that the antagonist could possibly strike again therefore raising questions toward a sequel.

Having created my storyboard, I think that this will aid my group and I when creating the group storyboard as my group can gather ideas from mine and attempt to incorporate this into the final idea. It will also help to bring ideas together and possibly use some of my ideas I have made within elements such as editing and sound. I hope that it will inspire my other group member in order to create a good quality storyboard together which includes both of our ideas. I also hope that some of my individual ideas are included within the group storyboard which will help in the creation of the thriller sequence as we would have included some of the best ideas therefore helping us to achieve a thriller that is most successful and engages our target audience fully. My storyboard is useful as it shows clearly what techniques I thought would be most effective at specific points in the sequence and a visual representation of what the shot will look like. It also gives a brief description of how the shot will help to present the narrative. When coming together as a group, we can make balanced decisions on choosing the shots and ideas which will be the best in showing the narrative clearly to the audience as well as helping them to understand what will happen in each frame. This will help us to produce a successful thriller sequence which will thrill the audience.

Planning Opening Credits - Miss Georgiou

Why are opening credits essential within thriller films?

Opening credits are important to include within a film as they introduce the important roles such as the cast as well as the team such as producers and directors etc. Also, the style of how the credits are presented help the audience to determine what genre a particular film falls into. For example, if certain credits are written in a jagged or distorted font, this may suggest that the audience are watching a thriller film. Opening credits are also used to reveal the title of the film to the audience and allow them to make their own individual perceptions of what they expect to see. Furthermore, the addition of sound and some images all contribute towards building tension and suspense within the audience as soon as the film starts in order to keep them engaged and encouraging them to watch on further to see what the narrative may be about. Opening credits can also be used to outline the film maker's intentions and set up the audience's expectations of a particular film as well as setting the scene  and giving the audience a foundation of the film.

Whilst planning my own opening credits for my thriller feature, I had to complete an analysis of the opening titles of the film 'Se7en' and broke this down into four sections; Colours, style of credits, use of conventions and order of appearance. I noticed that the opening sequence began with the inclusion of a variety of extreme close ups each focusing on different objects, this gives the audience an insight into what they are about to watch as it emphasises the size of the objects.

When analysing the colours, I noticed that black and white were the most dominant characters within the clip, a black background was used when each credit became visible on screen and these were written in white. The colour of the black represents the theme of death and could act as an example of foreshadowing of what is to come later on in the film connoting that, due to the theme being a thriller, a murder of some kind will happen which helps to keep the audience engaged as they are expecting to see this but are unaware of when it may occur. The use of both black and white represents the definite contrast between good and evil which helps to portray to the audience that good and evil will both be present within the film which in thrillers, represent an antagonist and protagonist. Furthermore, both colours are juxtaposed to one another as white, representing life, hope and goodness. Whereas, black represents darkness, mystery and death.The use of the two colours also help to provide a calming and dull feel to the scene creating suspense within the audience as  they may question why the film maker has decided to use such a simple colour scheme within the opening credits. Also, between 0.36 and 0.38 seconds of the trailer featured above there is a filter of red over the screen which can be interpreted as foreshadowing death, blood and murder within the film. The colour red also could be associated with blood, fire, desire and danger. For example, as the red filter is introduced suddenly, this shocks the viewers as they have only been using to seeing a plain black and white colour scheme that the film was portraying at first which could connote that the film features an event in which the audience will not expect it.  This is conventional to the thriller genre as elements of suspense and tension are to be created in order to portray an accurate representation of a thriller as well as encouraging the audience to watch the entire sequence. Furthermore, the tension built within the opening credits help to support the enigma being created as the audience feel a certain connection as they are left feeling disorientated and unsure of what is happening. This is emphasised through the use of several flashes showing different images after each credit has been shown such as a blade and someone drawing using a pencil. This leaves the audience confused as it is very unclear of what the narrative may be but is also showing an insight into a possible main character or significant character within the film which helps to keep the audience hooked. 

Another element that I analysed was the style in which the credits were written where I noticed that a jagged, scrawny handwriting font was used which immediately connotes that the film is a thriller. The sharpness of the letters represents the antagonist being mentally unstable which is highlighted through the use of a mirror effect in which the credits move and are constantly in and out of focus. This effect helps to grab the audience's attention by creating an almost 'trippy' visual as they don't expect it.  This helps to give the opening credits a hazed and tense atmosphere which therefore sets an overall tone for the entire sequence due to the style of writing mirroring a child's handwriting because of its lack of neatness which could suggest that there may a character present within the film who has the mentality of a child relating to a psycho. This also helps to reveal some of what the narrative could be connoting that the antagonist's state of mentality is completely destroyed and erratic as well as demonstrating that the antagonist's mind set is not balanced which is conventional to a thriller as it helps to portray characters and make the audience understand a little more about them through the text. 

I also analysed the use of conventions within this sequence. I noticed that the opening credits show several images of objects such as sharp objects, drawings and pens etc which implies that the person using them is planning on doing something dangerous which will be a method to use on each of their victims. In the scene, these are images are shown by the audience only being able to see a hand and nothing more which connotes that the character behind the camera does not wish to be seen or potentially identified. The use of hidden identity is conventional as antagonists do not like to be seen as it makes the narrative more interesting and therefore creating tension and suspense as the audience are left in the dark about who the antagonist may be. However, as the audience cannot see who is behind the actions within the opening scene, they will create a distant relationship with whoever the antagonist is as they are forced to believe that they cannot  trust them due to not showing their identity which creates suspense.

The order of appearance in which the credits were displayed were as follows; Director, most famous actors i.e. Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman, the title of the film which was shown in a larger and bolder font, the least famous actors, casting, music, costumes, editors, production, camera operator, co-producer, producer, writers and director. Within this film, the director's name was shown twice which may be because he is well known and the film maker believes that the audience will recognise his name and therefore his previous work in addition to this film which will be beneficial to the film as it will produce more profit as a larger viewing audience will want to watch.

Individual Opening Credits

Although I have already been assigned a group to work with on this particular project, we still had to create an individual idea of what our opening credits could possibly look like. To create this, we used the software Final Cut Pro on the Macs. When I started creating my credits, I chose a font style based on my knowledge of what is conventional to the thriller genre, although the style does not look child like or handwriting style, I believe this could be suitable for my thriller sequence as it is simplistic in its own way however the effect I have added on to it helps to blur it slightly which demonstrates the use of my psychological theme present. This style would be able to mirror the mind state of the hit man character within my thriller due to him developing amnesia after being attacked. After this, I began to think about what colours I wanted to include, I decided to use the dominant colour of red in which I added this onto the outline of the writing with a slight black and white shadow on the inside of each letter. I believe that this is effective as the red represents death and murder which helps the title to stand out on the black background as well as giving my audience an insight into what my narrative may be as a murder scene will be present. This would also help viewers to be able to identify what genre of film they are watching. The use of the black and white shadows are conventional to the thriller genre as it helps to demonstrate a definite contrast between good and evil (protagonist vs antagonist) therefore showing that both sides will be present within my opening sequence. As this followed the theory of Aristotle, I believed that these colours would be perfect together as they both have meanings juxtaposed to one another. For example the slight black tint represents a glimmer of death, darkness and evil whereas the white represents hope, innocence and purity. However, I decided to include only the tiniest hint of white in order to show that evil is dominant and will take over good shown within the murder scene. After deciding on which font and colours I would like to use, I used Final Cut Pro to put an effect on my credits in which I selected the Earthquake effect which made the text bolder and shake slightly. I chose this because this would help to create a disorientated feel within my target audience which would help to demonstrate one of my character's mental state. I took this inspiration from 'Se7en's opening credits as this was an effect used also in this to suggest that something or someone is not stable within the film. Within my thriller, this character would be my antagonist as he discovers his wife dead which sparks something in his brain and causes him to go insane therefore justifying his reasons for embarking on the rampage seeking revenge. This killing would be this particular character's instability as the audience are left wondering what he could be capable of doing next therefore creating tension. This is conventional to the thriller genre as it makes the viewers feel tense as the fonts are not balanced and credits written in this way help the audience to establish what genre of film they are about to watch as well as revealing an insight into the potential narrative. After adding the effect to my credits, I watched the entire sequence back and was very pleased with the end result and I am confident that this will be the style I use within my final opening credits sequence. I will also aim to add in flashes of moving images from my first scenes which will be shot in the forest location so as to give the audience an insight into what the sequence may be about while ensuring that I don't give too much away in order to keep the viewers engaged in what they are watching. Furthermore, I have decided to position the title of the film slightly to the left hand side making its way across the screen to the middle so as to grab the audience's attention. For the order of appearance, I will use the same format that the opening sequence of 'Se7en' has therefore my order will be; production company name, famous actors, title of film, actors with the least amount of screen time, casting, music, costume, editors, production, camera operator, co-producer, producer, writer(s) and finally the director's name again. This is because I believe that the most well known actors with the greatest amount of screen time should appear first so that the audience know to learn  who they are and what role they will play within the film. When I get back into my group, I will show my idea for the opening credits and explain why I think that this style should be used within our thriller sequence so that the other member of my group will be able to understand these purposes and why I believe that my idea is suitable for the opening.

Kate's Opening Credit

As you can see, Kate decided to use the colours of black, white and red on her individual opening credit where the coloured fonts are featured against a plain black background. This was to represent the two sides of good and evil within the film as in our thriller, there will be both an antagonist and protagonist as well as a victim as our narrative follows the Aristotle theory. The fonts she decided to use were Antique for the production company name and Outline for the title. The font in which the words 'Spotlight Productions Presents' are shown seem a little odd as every letter is in capitals and although it is bold, it doesn't necessarily connote the thriller genre if we were to use this within our opening sequence therefore confusing the audience. Also, I think the title of the film should be a bigger size so as to show viewers clearly the name of the film therefore helping to suggest possible narrative ideas. However, this does make the title of the film stand out which would immediately grab the audience's attention as well as making a bold statement that this is the film's title. The boldness also demonstrates that something big is going to happen within the film which will have a significant impact on the viewers. There is no effect on the credits therefore I think that this style could come across as being quite boring to the audience therefore this will be something that I need to discuss with Kate before we decide on the final style for our opening credits. The fact that the title of the film is in red connotes that blood and death will be a major part within the film and the contrast between the other colours present also help to demonstrate the emphasis of danger the victim is going to face in the film and could possibly imply that someone's life is going to be changed forever.

As a group, we have decided to follow my idea as we feel that this would be the most conventional idea to follow in order to create the most successful thriller we possibly can. Taking inspiration from the opening credits to 'Se7en' we will include several flashes of images of scenes shot in the unknown location in which it captures the hostage waking up and being told his task as well as showing the exchange of money and other documents up until the point where the antagonist supplies his accomplice with the murder weapon as well as the address of where he needs to go and the house keys for him to be able to enter the house without causing suspicion. This will help to prolong tension created as well as not giving too much away to the audience in order to keep viewers engaged in what they are watching. Between each image, we will show each credit individually; the actors playing the roles of the hit man and antagonist (George Jinks and Louee Petty)  will be featured first followed by the actor who play the roles of the target (Krista Haydon). The company name (Spotlight Productions) will be featured at the beginning of the sequence followed by the director's name (Kate Arwadi). These names will be repeated for hair, costume, makeup etc. as Kate and I also played some crew roles in order to contribute further towards our film. Between each credit, a flash of an image will be featured to expose some of the narrative to the audience as well as making them wonder what could possibly be going on. Within our opening sequence, I think that the company and director's name should appear first as they play the most significant role within the creation of a film and deserve the most recognition. The actors playing the hit man and antagonist will be featured after this as these are the main characters within our sequence and are the characters to look out for. We will then have the bold title of the film appear encouraging viewers to start making individual perceptions of what they interpret from the title such as what genre the film may fall into and what the narrative could possibly compose of. The name of the actor which play a less important part within the film (victim) will then be shown in order to give them the recognition they deserve even though they are not featured in a majority of the film so as to suggest to the audience that this minor role could also play a very significant part within the narrative.

Research into Target Audience - Miss Miller

To help us in knowing which elements to include within our thriller sequence, we decided to create a questionnaire and ask 40 people different questions relating to content within thriller films and what they would like to see in order to be able to make our opening relatable and exciting for the audience to watch. We decided to ask 40 people in order to gather a wide variety of data and make our results more reliable. I will then use these results within planning my thriller sequence by having a knowledge of what people expect to see in a thriller and incorporate this into my own work. Our questionnaire is featured below.

When asking our 40 people, we ensured to mainly ask questions to people of our specific target audience age range however asking some people out of this range as well in order to gain a full understanding of what people like to see within thriller films. We then decided to demonstrate our results in a pie chart format to show clearly the data which we have collected.

This pie chart shows the different age groups of the people that we conducted our survey to. A majority of our interviewees were within the ages of 15 and 18 which is ideal as this was the age group we were aiming to appeal to when making our thriller. This question may seem irrelevant now but this will aid me significantly when planning the narrative and content of my thriller sequence. For example, 15-18 year olds are more likely to watch adult themes such as seeing a murder take place, blood and gore which is something that viewers of a younger age may not be able to witness due to the harsh nature of these particular scenes. Therefore, this will mean that I will be able to put some of these scenes into the sequence in order to create the maximum amount of tension and suspense which is crucial in creating a successful thriller.

The next question that I asked was 'What Gender Are You?' and the pie chart opposite shows that a 75% of the people I asked were female and only 25% were male. This could mean that my results may be slightly inaccurate and unreliable as females have different ideas of what they like to see within a thriller in comparison to what males like. In order to rectify this, I will ensure that I include a narrative which will appeal to both a male and female audience in order for my sequence to be successful and popular. In addition to this, I think that my results turned out this way as I mainly talk to girls within school however the males I asked were within my family therefore I will need to include key themes suitable for both genders. 

The next question which I asked as part of my questionnaire was 'What features do you expect to find in a thriller and why?' in which we age 4 possible answers consisting of blood, a killer, female victim and a fight scene. As you can see, a majority chose the answer of a killer with 44%. This is a main convention of a thriller film as without a killer, whether the identity is revealed or not, there would be no narrative for the story to be driven forward and therefore you would be creating a useless thriller. The inclusion of a killer also helps to create elements such as shock, surprise, suspense and tension crucial for a successful thriller to be created. From this set of data, I know to include a killer at some point in my sequence in order to achieve all of the elements needed in order to create a relationship between my target audience and characters by making them feel extremely scared and almost as though they have been put in a particular character's shoes and feel some sense of inclusion causing them to wonder what could happen next and what the killer could be capable of doing. Furthermore, this question was one of our several open questions in which we gave our possible target audience the opportunity to explain in their own words why they chose their answer.  Because of these results, both Kate and I know to include a killer which will be used to terrorise certain characters and evoke relative emotions of fear as well as a psychological impact in order to create an original narrative, one that isn't present in any other thriller films already released. 

When asking the next question, I thought carefully about the main micro-elements which are used to create senses of  surprise and suspense. My data shows that the most popular answer was sound at 70% which isn't surprising as this was the element that I also believed to be the most successful in creating surprise and suspense which is because sound is the most crucial element within film as it is the main component for evoking senses of shock and tension from a particular film. If a film had no sound, it would not have the same effect due to having an unclear idea of what is happening. I can use this set of results in planning my thriller sequence as I am now aware that the addition of sinister and scary music can be used in certain scenes in order to create these elements of shock and tension. Following on from this, I now know to include a range of different sounds in order to create elements of surprise and suspense at intense points within the sequence as well as including sounds in less significant places in order to build up the tension leading up to the murder scene which would therefore shock the audience more. 

Leading on from this, I also decided to ask a question based on what weapons the people I asked would expect to see within a thriller film and I gathered a wide variety of results from this. Knives was the most popular answer in this particular question with a majority of 56% choosing this answer which is not surprising as a knife is the main murder weapon featured in the most successful thriller films. For example, Scream and Halloween. I believe that this is because it connotes that a murder is going to take place but doesn't however show an extreme amount of gore which would be most likely to be shown in a horror rather than a thriller. Elaborating on this, rope was the second most popular answer with 24% selecting this answer. I think that my results showed this as rope is not a common weapon used to murder within thrillers and it is unique to see a different murder weapon being used to set it aside from the usual thriller films. However, a low number of only 12% chose a gun as their preferred choice which surprised me to a certain extent as a gun is a lethal murder weapon by having the ability to kill within a single shot but I realised that the inclusion of a gun within a thriller would make the film like an action film which is unconventional. These results are positive as my idea for a narrative was a young woman being stabbed to death and it is good to see that a knife is the most popular among a possible audience. In addition to this, I made this question an open answer so as to gather an idea of why they chose their specific answer. When asking this, a majority explained that it was because it evoked an element of tension as they watch to see what will happen next as well as feeling as though they have been put in a certain character's shoes as usually everyone but the victim is aware of what is about to happen, including the audience. Therefore, I am confident in using a knife as a murder weapon as I know that I am closely following the conventions relating to the thriller genre and also enticing my target audience as this is what they want to see.

The next question is again an open question and I asked of their opinion of what they consider the best thriller film to be. I gave 4 options of films which included; The Purge, Black Swan, The Strangers and Halloween and then asked to justify the reason for their choice. My data has concluded that Black Swan was the most popular with 60% choosing this and I believe that the reason for this is because the film features a narrative which is completely driven by a strong psychological theme evident throughout which helps to create extreme elements of suspense. This could also be because I mainly asked these questions to females which are more likely to enjoy a psychological narrative than males. I think that the reason that Halloween was the least popular choice with only 16% selecting this choice is because the narrative is revealed in the opening scene whereas Black Swan leaves audiences guessing until the very end and they are left wanting to watch until the concluding scenes in order to piece together the story. Within my opening sequence, I am aiming to include a psychological narrative uniquely in order to ensure that my audience are left on the edge of their seats throughout the entire sequence. Therefore, these results are very helpful as I have been made aware that a film with a psychological theme present came out as being the most popular due to the narrative being original and something that conventional thrillers such as Scream have never included before. This question also had a second part to it asking the potential audience to explain why they chose what they did, they mentioned that Black Swan was most popular due to having a strong psychological narrative which also plays on the audience as well as on the characters themselves and because it also included some well known actresses such as Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman which therefore makes the audience more relatable and enjoyable. I will therefore take this theme on board for my own sequence and ensure that I clearly display this so that it doesn't get too confusing to the audience.

When asking my possible target audience 'Where do you prefer the Thriller location to be?' I have come to the conclusion that an abandoned cabin was the most popular choice with a large number of 52% of people choosing this. However these results were of no surprise to me as an abandoned cabin is an isolated location and I am aware, due to my knowledge of conventions within the thriller genre, an isolated setting is ideal for a thriller to take place due to the killer being able to strike without getting caught as no one would have witnessed the murder and is therefore able to kill again which helps a narrative to unfold. It also helps to create a tense and scary atmosphere within a specific scene as they will be able to sense that something is not quite right and that something bad is going to happen but builds tension as the audience are left unsure of exactly when it may occur. When the scene reaches its climax, this helps to create the maximum amount of shock and surprise as the audience are left thrilled enabling them to watch on further to see what may happen next. While analysing these results, I know that my thriller sequence should include an abandoned cabin setting however I will be unable to do this as my local area lacks abandoned cabins therefore I have chosen to use a variety of settings including a forest and a house. A forest is an isolated setting and will be able to create the elements needed for my thriller to be successful as well as the house evoking a sense of realism and suggests that it could happen to anyone which builds tension. Although a house is the least popular answer with only 6% selecting this, it could also make the audience to watch and see if they like the particular location.


I also decided to ask a question looking for answers in response to whether or not they would want to see the killer's identity revealed with which they were given a simple yes or no option. Looking at this particular pie chart, you can clearly see that my results showed that a majority of 78% would want to see this happen.I believe that this is because the unveiling of a killer evokes a sense of tension as well as surprise as it could turn out to be someone who the audience would never have suspected of being the killer which also makes the thriller more enjoyable to watch in order to watch further to reach the point where the identity is shown. It also allows the audience to create a relationship with the killer as they are now able to see what they look like and how they achieved killing their victims with much success and know more about them than before. However the people who chose the option of no can be justified by the fact that some thrillers feature many sequels in which the enigma created is extended and the story line is spread across these sequels before the killer's identity is revealed. The audience also like the elements of mystery and suspense as they watch on further to see if they are ever given the opportunity to come face to face with the killer. I will incorporate the results of this question into my own work by only showing the hit man's face and not the actual antagonist until the very end which will keep my target audience on the edge of their seats throughout the entire sequence and keep them engaged. From this question, I have decided to have the antagonist left hidden until the very last moment as I want to deeply shock my target audience and feel inclined to watch the entire sequence in order to find out who it turns out to be. This would then also create an element of tension as the audience are now able to see what the antagonist is capable of doing and may feel uncomfortable and scared about what he may do next.

I also decided to ask 'Do you think the killer should be male or female?' within my questionnaire. The answers didn't surprise me as having a female killer is extremely unconventional to the thriller genre which is because only 10% of people chose this and also females are usually portrayed as being the victim as they are inferior and weak and are therefore less likely to fight back against the killer which makes them an easy target. They are also seen as being quite naive in the fact that they are usually left unaware of what is about to happen to them. Within my thriller sequence, I have chosen to use a male killer and a female victim in order for it to remain close to what the conventions are expected of in a thriller film to enable the audience to become gripped on my narrative as well as fully understanding the story line.

The answers for my final question in which I asked 'What type of theme do you like to see in a thriller?' were generally quite mixed as it is a question mainly based on an individual opinion and that there is no specific answer that they need to select. All of the themes which were given are all portrayed in many different ways in a selection of thriller films. Murder was the most popular answer within this question with 48% choosing this option and both kidnap and obsession were the least popular answers only gathering 16% of people. I believe that this is because these themes are very realistic and may have happened to particular people who would watch my thriller sequence and would therefore bring back bad memories of what may have happened to them. As it is an extremely realistic theme, this could cause the audience to possibly be too scared and less likely to watch until the end. I can use this set of data to aid me in creating my own thriller sequence as I now know that either a murder or chase scene should be evident in order to appeal to my specific audience. By including these themes, this will help to engage my audience and encourage them to watch the entire sequence in order to gather an overall idea of the narrative.

The second part of this research task was to create Vox Pops. Vox Pops are videos of the questionnaire created being carried out on some people to show that this research has been carried out fully. I filmed 3 Vox Pops in order to show that I haven't created my answers for the questionnaire from imagination. This type of research is extremely reliable as it captures specific people's initial responses to the questions being asked as well as constructing data that is qualitative that I am able to go back to and analyse whenever it is needed.

In conclusion, these results have really helped me when creating my own thriller sequence as I am able to understand what content my possible target audience would want to see in order to enjoy what they are watching. For example, I know that I need to include a murder as well as a chase scene which is what the audience wanted to see based on the results from some of my questions that were asked. This also helps me to determine whether or not my chosen narrative will highly appeal to the audience which seems to be that they will upon analysing the data that I have collected. If I were to carry out this particular research task again, I would ask more specific questions relating to sequels and the purpose. This would enable me in getting even more detail from my questionnaire as well as making sure that I made a sequel or had an initial purpose for the thriller sequence to be driven upon such as an enigma.