The opening scene of the movie Lucy depicts the first human, Lucy, through animation set in the landscapes of Earth. Scarlett Johansson provides narration as Lucy, asking the audience a rhetorical question about humanity's impact on the world in a moment that may foreshadow later events. The scene cuts quickly between vibrant colors shots of different global locations to set the fast-paced, action-thriller tone of the film.

1. Thriller Movies
Nicole Agnew

2. World War Z
Thriller Conventions
Quick Cuts to
emphasis the fast
pace of the movie
Fast paced dramatic music
playing in the back ground
and narrations and voice
overs
Montage of
different shots to
portray quick
tempo and add
drama
Background
sounds such as;
cars honking,
helicopter sounds,
people talking,
engines rumbling

3. Thriller Conventions
World War Z
Urban settings- New York city
helps set the scene)
Guns and weapons used to
show the audience that it is
an action/thriller
Real clips of movies, TV
programmes and news
(includes realism)
Themes include
terrorism and
supernatural events

4. World War Z
Thriller ConventionsThe letter Z in the
opening scene is nigger
than the rest of the title.
This may be seen as
foreshadowing, that the
zombies will attempt to
take over the city and
something horrific will
happen in relation to the
Z. In the opening scene
loads of tragic events and
news reports are played,
which gives the audience
an indication that
something dramatic,
along those lines will
happen and that the
human race is going to
face difficulty or some
sort of supernatural
attack.
The opening scene of
this movie has different
variations of angles. It
shows long shots and
close ups of the worlds
surroundings to remind
the audience how
beautiful and majestic
the earth is. However,
to contrast with this,
the opening scene then
adds in very long shots
and video coverage of
slums, poverty, over
crowding and
underlining problems
that the world
currently faces. This Is
so the audience
understands that there
will be a downward
spiral in the plot twist.

5. World War Z
Opening Scene Conventions
Landscapes and
establishing
shots to set the
scene
Title sequence and
actor names blend
in with
background clips
Soundtrack
includes voice
overs and news
commentation
Compilations of
photographs and
videos to add
realism and
context

6. World War Z
Opening Scene Conventions
Narration is included
at the start (news
reporters)
Opening scene
included flashbacks
to show context and
real life footage
Action scenes and
come animations are
shown to help
audience establish
the genre
Chase scenes and
compilation clips are
included

7. World War Z
Opening Scene Conventions
World War Z opening
scene starts with non-
diegetic acoustic music.
This calms the
audience but also
prepares and unnerves
them, as they already
know that the movie is
a thriller, so it makes
them suspicious. As
the clips continue, the
music slowly picks up
pace and increases in
volume, this builds
subconscious tension.
The sound of the news
voice overs also
overlaps the clips and
music and provides
information and
subtext for the
audience
The letter “Z” in the
movie title “World
War Z” stands for
zombies, but the
audience wouldn’t
actually know this
by looking at the
title (unless they are
aware of the plot of
the movie). This
provides mystery
and secrecy which
goes well with the
whole theme and
genre of the movie
itself. Although the
words “World War”
already provide
information that
there will be a
conflict in the
movie.

8. Gone Girl
Thriller Conventions
Dim lighting to
set a calm,
spooky scene
Dim, low
contrast colours
(grey, blue) to
lower mood
Low level, tense
but calming
music to fit the
camera shot
Flowing
scenes (no
cuts)

9. Gone Girl
Thriller Conventions
Flowing angle scene
to add rhythm and
slow tempo
Sound includes main
actor narrating
Close up shot of
actresses face to
express emotions of
threat and fear
Shadows and slow
zooming out to flow
with narration

10. Gone Girl
Thriller Conventions
The opening shot
depicts a woman
and her husband
narrating the scene
about how he wants
to “crack her skull” ,
which straight away
shows flaws in his
character. Her face
and the emotions
she portrays shows
that she does not
feel much love and
affection towards
him, which makes
the audience
question the
stability of their
relationship and
question what the
two have done to
each other.
The first scene also
shows the husband
standing outside
after taking the
trash out and
looking back at his
house, reluctant to
go in. This may tell
the audience that he
is not happy with his
home life and
something in his life
is making him
miserable/unhappy.
This further more
helps the audience
establish the
destructive
relationship he has
with his wife and
their seemingly
unhappy marriage.

11. Gone Girl
Opening Scene Conventions
Opening scene
includes production
logos, title and actor
tributes
Narrative is conducted
in the opening scene
by the husband (main
character)
Landscape shot of the
husband outside his
house starts the movie
A soundtrack of very
low pitch and calming
creepy music is used

12. Gone Girl
Opening Scene Conventions
At the beginning the
establishing shot of
woman's face is
shown
Title sequence is
included at the start
Quick scene cuts to
set the pace
Flashbacks of the
couples memories
together are shown
to portray their love

13. Gone Girl
Opening Scene ConventionsThe opening scene
contrast highly with
the following scene
in which Amy (main
character) is writing
in her diary about
her first encounter
with her future
husband. The
lighting is bright
and easy, compared
to the opening
scene where the
shot of her head
has dark lighting
and a lot of dim
contrasts and
shadows. This may
be a representation
of her mental state
and how it changed
The flashbacks
followed by the
opening scene are
used to show the
audience of what
type of relationship
the couple had
before and how
happy they were, in
comparison to now,
where everything is
presented in a dark,
negative light. This
allows the audience
to understand how
their relationship
has taken a dark
twists and how it
will effect the plot
of the movie and its
context

14. Black Swan
Thriller ConventionsVery dim and
low key
lighting to set
the tone
Variations and
changes in
angle shots
Tense music that
increases as the
scene continues
A lot of
shadows and
contrast to
build tension

15. Black Swan
Thriller Conventions
All black and white
shots to help build
scene
No narration, but
dramatic music that
builds up and then
releases tension
Protagonist (swan)
Montage of
different shots and
dancing variations
(music based)

16. Thriller Conventions
In the opening scene
the spotlight shines
on the woman
dancing (Natalie
Portman), which
shows the audience
that she is going to be
that main character
throughout the
movie. The fact that
she is dancing alone
and is in such a dark
and isolated
environment may
show her mental state
(as we later find out is
true). This character is
the lonely female
protagonist and
seems very vulnerable
and pure in this
lighting.
At the start of the
scene, Natalie
Portman is dancing
alone but seems to be
in control of herself
and her movements.
This shows that she is
independent but may
also mean that this
stability she finds
within herself may be
destroyed as the
movie continues. This
scene is filmed via a
long shot but straight
angle which makes
the audience feel very
close to the character
and as though she is
right there dancing in
front of them.
Black Swan

17. Opening Scene Conventions
Title sequence is
included after the
opening scene
All background
sounds are
eliminated by the
classical music
The camera angle is
always centred on the
dancer (shows main
character)
All background
light is blacked
out by blackness
and shadows
Black Swan

18. Opening Scene Conventions
Establishing and
landscape of the
black swan
performing
This is a an
action/physical
dancing scene that
helps establish the
context
Production logos
are added before
the opening scene
There is a spooky
soundtrack that
includes, deep and
loud classical music
Black Swan

19. Black Swan
Opening Scene Conventions
The close ups used
in this movie create
tension and a
spooky feel. The
fact that Natalie
Portman does not
wear makeup in a
lot of the scenes
can reflect the fact
that she is
stressed/depressed
and it makes the
audience feel closer
to her because she
is revealing her true
self. Although most
scenes have well lit
rooms, there are
still a lot of
shadows (thriller
effect)
The protagonist
usually wears white
which represents
innocence and
purity, which is a
contrast to her
actual
characteristics, as
the audience know
she is not stable
and is disturbed.
One scene contrasts
both sides of a
room (mirror scene)
which can
represent her
emotions and
bipolar personality,
one side is light and
the other is dark.
Use of mirrors is
typical for thrillers.

20. Lucy
Thriller ConventionsQuick cuts
between
scenes that
show different
locations
Constant angle
shot changes,
close ups and
long shots, very
long shots
Background noise
of city, animals,
human life (no
music)
Montage of
different shots,
locations,
cities.

21. Lucy
Thriller ConventionsProtagonist is
introduced
straight away
Movie starts of
faced pace to
show the genre
(action/thriller)
Sounds of nature,
birds, animals at
the beggining
Animation of first
human ever
(Lucy)

22. Lucy
Thriller Conventions
Protagonist and
main character of
the movie is
Scarlett Johansson
who at the start
of the movie is
portrayed as the
first Homosapian
human called
“Lucy” and this
scene is used both
at the start and
end of the movie
and is considered
a flashback and
foreshadowing
without the
audience even
knowing.
The opening scene
has several
camera edits and
cuts from one
image to another
of different
locations around
the world such as
cities and rural
area. The cuts
between the
scenes are really
fast and set the
action based feel
of the movie. It
also prepares the
audience for the
thriller/action
that will be
practised in the
following scenes

23. Lucy
Opening Scene Conventions
Opening scene
includes
foreshadowing
and flashback
Animation is
used to create
Lucy the first
homosapian
Actors credits
and title are
played during
opening scene
Title sequence is
shown during
opening scene

24. Lucy
Opening Scene Conventions
Chase scene and
fast scene cuts
shown at the start
Landscape and long
shot of first human on
Earth (animation) is
shown
Narrative content
by Scarlett
Johansson to
introduce the scene
Production
logos are visible
before the
opening scene

25. Lucy
Opening Scene ConventionsThe opening
scene depicts a
landscape and
long shot with
bright rich
colours.
Although this is
not typical for a
thriller/action
movie, it helps
the audience
prepare for the
rest of the
scenes, as they
are also
consisting of
bright vibrant
colours and
characters, but
the whole movie
is action based
The opening scene
includes a narrative
conducted by
Scarlett Johansson
(Lucy) the main
character. Here she
asks the audience a
rhetorical question
“What have we
done with the
world?” this could
be interpreted as a
moment of
foreshadowing,
where she warns
the audience of
what they are
about to see,
through a question.
She is setting the
scene for the movie