Conventions of thrillers:
Conventions of magazine posters:
Conventions of film magazine covers:
How have I used these conventions and what influenced them?
To see exactly how I have used the conventional technical codes in my film, I have written a textual analysis:
Mise en scene
The mise en scene of my film is crucial in creating semantic connotations and helping the audience understand the characters and what their role in the narrative is. After researching the conventions of thrillers, and watching many thriller feature and short films, I came up with the following costume for my antagonist; black balaclava, grey jacket, black leather gloves, jeans, and a handgun. This is a typical costume which is worn by the antagonist of thriller films, depending on the type of story that it is. I used a balaclava because I wanted to keep the identity of the killer hidden until the very end as this gives a greater sense of danger and mystery. This mystery also helps build the atmosphere because the character seems unpredictable due to the connotations of balaclavas, which are that they are used by criminals and are often associated with violent crimes.
The costume I have chosen for my protagonist is: black jacket, black jeans, and styled hair. I have chosen to dress him in casual clothes because I wanted him to look like an average person as this is a convention of thrillers and it makes the audience feel like the same thing could happen to them, increasing the anxiety and suspense.
I chose a garage location because for a similar reason - I wanted it to look like it could happen to any normal person . The garage was a good place to film this as it looks quite well-used, because it is, and it is located behind a house in a residential area.
Cinematography
The cinematography in my film is very symbolic both semantically and narratively. The first shot of the film is a handheld close up shot of Liam inside the boot of the car. I used this shot first because I wanted to being the film with the audience not being fully aware of what they are seeing/not sure what's going on, because this links to the state of mind of Liam as he also doesn't know what's going on. It then cuts to a low angle medium shot on the ground from the back of the car of Ben getting out of the car and walking to the boot. I have chosen to use a shot like this of his feet because, again, the audience do not know what's going on, where they are, and who it is. The next shot is a medium shot of the boot being opened and here we see Ben's leather gloves, which connote to the audience that there is some sort of criminal activity going on, before it is revealed that Liam is unconscious in the boot of a car.
After the title screen, we cut to the interior of the garage, however, the audience does not see the exterior so they may not know it is a garage, which is the intended idea - confusion, unanswered questions. The shot I have used here is a medium shot or Liam's head that tracks on a slider to the left, to reveal it is Liam. The floodlight is in the middle of the frame here, with Liam in the left third. I have done this because after seeing that he has been taken hostage, the light should connote to the audience that he is going to be interrogated, beaten up etc. We then cut to a high angle medium shot of Liam before panning and tracking left and up to reveal Ben stood in front of the light so we can see his silhouette. This is synced with the music as I wanted it to be an significant moment as I have revealed the head of the killer, even though his face is not visible - it indicates that he is dangerous.
A few shots later, when he picks up the duct tape and begins to tape him up, I have used a medium low angle shot to show this because I wanted a shot of both characters, the chair, the light, and part of the doorframe to show the full extent of the situation. The doorframe is visible in the right third of the frame because I wanted to give the audience another clue as to where they are, and even if they are still unaware, they have something else to go off - making the audience ask questions all the time by slowly revealing things, which is a convention of thrillers.
I have employed low key lighting throughout the entirety of the garage sequence because this is also a convention of thrillers, and I have been inspired by old noir films that use a lot of shadows and high contrast lighting. Low key lighting is vital in creating atmospheric, suspenseful moods because the high contrast and shadows can make it difficult for the viewer to see everything, which adds to the mystery and the constant guessing game in their minds.
Before the exterior of the garage is revealed, the music increases in volume and pitch, and I have a close up shot of Ben, with Liam in the background. I have used a shallow depth of field and a pull focus in this shot to switch the audience's attention from Ben, to Liam, and back again. I have pulled the focus from Ben to Liam when ben lifts his head up and looks at him because we are seeing this bit from his point of view and we are seeing what he is seeing. Also, this type of pull focus connotes to the audience that Ben is about to do something bad to Liam. Ben then stands up and grabs the smelling salts. I have used another shallow depth of field pull focus on a close up shot here as I wanted the audience to follow Ben's hands as he gets the salts, so I pull the focus to the bench as he grabs them, and then back as he holds them and open them - this coincides with the music reaching its climax.
Sound
The soundtrack is a vital element in manipulating the audience in my film because I have mixed tracks to the clips to influence them. For example, when Liam is about to be woken up, the music increases in volume and pitch until he is awake. I have done this because I wanted to build suspense up until this point and make the audience full of anticipation to see what he's going to do to Liam. I have used several tracks from David Fincher's thriller Gone Girl, because I really like the way the music created a dark atmosphere in this film and this is the effect I wanted in my film.
I have used sound effects of a gun firing to create realism when Ben shoots at Liam. The sound effects are essential for this because otherwise, the gun shots would not look real at all.
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