2. Psychological thrillers are a result of a hybridisation of
one major genre and a sub-genre; horror and thriller. If
you hadn’t already guessed, psychological thrillers tend
to be considered a sub-genre of horror – this is due to
their overall aim to shock, but instead of being
forthcoming with it, they play around with the
audiences’ perception of the narrative in order to subject
them to shock.
3. Tries to alternate from the conventions associated with
horror & thriller
Flashbacks
Abstract danger
Unpredictable narrative content
Distorted diegetic sound
Obscure Binary Opposites
4. Low-key lighting
Alternating camera angles within a scene
Extensive use of close up
Slow pace of editing
Use of CGI & FX
Incidental non-diegetic sound
More adult themed
5. Despite horror not being my most frequent response
to the “favourite genre” question, when asked which
thriller genre was preferred, psychological thrillers
obtained the majority with 24%.
Bearing this in mind, it suggests that to some
consumers that they prefer psychological thrillers
which contain more features of thriller films rather
than horror; thriller was my most popular subgenre
chosen.
6. With the decision to reciprocate thriller conventions, the
formation of the narrative would have to utilise abstract
danger from an obscure antagonist. Focusing on my
questionnaire, the antagonist would most likely have to
be male; although the decision on whether he acts alone
or not rests entirely on me. In fact, this may be an
interesting feature for the narrative to play on if
audiences can not truly determine the number of threats
the protagonists have to face. One feature which I most
focus on is that it is important to try and cloud the
thoughts of viewers in order to make them think about
the narrative.
7. Binary opposition is a theory typically applied in
narratives; it would be in my interest however to blur the
lines between the antagonist and protagonist in some
manner in order to alter the audiences perception of
what would be a crystal clear situation otherwise. For
example, placing some similar traits between the
protagonist and the antagonist in order to establish a
noticeable rivalry, but in turn providing some separation
between the protagonist and his peers. This would serve
to humanize the subject rather than make him seem like
an unrealistic hero – people change under pressure, this
is key to make the scenario seem believeable.
8. Kuleshov’s ‘Cause & Effect’ theory is also a key feature to
narratives. The scenario that the protagonists find
themselves in is one that appears seemingly out of their
hands, despite their being a simple resolution. For
Kuleshov’s theory to be instigated, it would be
imperative for the ‘cause’ to be instigated during the
course of Act 1 of the trailer, while the effect starts in Act
2 and builds up to a crescendo in Act 3 of the
production.
