1. 1. In what way does your
media product use, develop
or challenge forms and
conventions of real media
products?
2. How the opening sets up the thriller.
The introduction to the thriller gained inspiration
from the film Transporter, an action/thriller from
2002, although it does differ massively. Most
noticeably, Transporter starts off in an underground
car park. Ideally I would have liked to start my
thriller introduction in this location aswell, but there
weren’t any car parks locally so another location
was chosen, the group decided on a barn.
It still takes it’s initial inspiration from Transporter
because it follows the same sort of long zoom shots
of the car which adds to the enigma. Living in a
rural area, the idea to chose a farmland location
increases the thriller aspect to my peers as this is
the location we all live in and around.
The initial opening shot of a distant car is to create the
sense of isolation. This is portrayed well in Transporter but
a lot of time elapses until you see some human interaction.
My thriller introduction immediately starts with a person in the shot, aswell as
creating a sense of space in the shot it also adds to the isolation factor. This is
particularly unnerving because it expresses that someone can walk around with a
weapon unnoticed.
3. How the opening suggests the genre
The moment the audience sees the weapon in hand they can immediately deduce that this film will either be a horror or a thriller.
I think as soon as the soundtrack commence is when the audience can eliminate that its going to be a horror, as the soundtrack
is a lot more unnerving and rises and falls to create an off-putting rhythm.
This is also where we have our first enigma. The fact that the actor’s face is away from the camera so that all you can see is his
back, frustrates the audience. This shot provokes questions in the audiences head right from the start. Who is he?
The position the car is parked helps the audience identify it, it is parked very neatly amongst abandoned vehicles, it is clean,
which contrasts with everything around it, and it really doesn’t belong in a farmland scene. All of these points draws the
audiences attention to the car and the fact that it is in the centre of the shot also helps.
The scene cuts at this moment to
ensure the visibility of the car isn’t
obstructed. This is so that it keeps it’s
importance in the audiences mind.
The car still remains in shot as this is the
focus of the scene. The outfit of the actor
was chosen carefully to reflect upon the
location and possible career of the
character.
4. As the first few seconds of the clip elapse, and we see a man walking into the shot, the audience will be
able to notice that he is carrying a gun. The way that the weapon is concealed from the camera was
chosen very carefully. I didn’t want it to be very obvious that he was armed, but I also didn’t want it to be
impossible to notice. I took inspiration from Alfred Hitchcock for this, his technique for allowing the viewer
to see how the film was going to unfold proved to be very popular with audiences because it made them
feel clever. I feel that this amount of concealment was just right for the shot and finds the middle-ground
in between the weapon being noticed and not.
The positioning of the
gun is very important.
It was chosen
because of its sleek
barrel so it can’t be
easily identified, but
because it is placed in
front of the actor
rather than to the side
or even of his
shoulder, suggests
trepidation, giving the
audience clues as to
the films genre, and it The weapon is then lowered as he
also suggests that the approaches his destination, showing the
character’s intentions audience that he is comfortable he
are more important doesn’t need to be on his guard anymore.
than the character
itself.
5. Continuity editing
When the editing was done for the continuity, I had to check to make sure everything flowed. This was done prior to filming,
as the storyboard showed what shots we were going to do, where they were going to be placed and from what sides the
character would be shown, but a secondary check was needed post-filming. This was to ensure that none of the fundamental
rules were broken in the filming process.
Such things as consistent lighting, weather, props, no shift in camera placement and not breaking the 180 degree rule .
The direction of motion is back
This is the exception to the 180
The motion of this shot moves to Left to Right to reinforce the
degree rule. The motion in this
from Right to Left earlier intention
shot moves from Left to Right.
This is to make the audience feel
uncomfortable.
The 180 degree rule exception comes back
to reinforce the earlier uncomfortable
feeling felt by the audience.
6. Props
Props play a vital role in all forms of media. In my thriller video, the props ensure vital aspects of the film.
The first prop the viewer might
notice is the disused tractor, The second prop they might
this helps the audience notice is the car in the centre
recognise the scene and of the shot. This shows the
abandoned feeling of the audience that it doesn’t
location. belong.
The farming machinery
should hopefully The next prop to be seen should be
enforce the idea of the the weapon. It’s intended impact is
location and make it to cause the viewer much discomfort
seem realistic. as guns are generally associated
with violence.
Costume can also
be linked in as a
prop as it helps
create a sense o
The footwear should also aid
character to the
the audience in realising the
audience. This one
location. This footwear is
gives a farmer
essential in the location
appearance.
because of the weather.
7. Inter-cutting Credits
All of the shots shown have footage
before and after the credits, the only
exception is the shot above. This is
because it is the end of the film which
reveals the film title.
8. Credits
The film Se7en was the inspiration for the effects on the credits. They flicker in the same way and are produced in a
very sketchy manner giving the rushed, free-hand effect.
Although the spacing and size of the font is kept consistent in my thriller film as opposed to in Se7en, the perspective
of how the credits appear changes in everyone. This is to make the audience feel uncomfortable with the shifting
angles.
9. Logo
There wasn’t really any existing inspiration for my logo idea. The only inspiration is the physical appearance of one of my
group members. As far as I’m aware, no production company logo is similar to this. The idea to turn it into an animation, I
believe, was a good one because many modern day logo’s are animations at the start of the film as it introduces the audience
to the various shots, angles and effects that will be used later in the film. I experimented with inserting the logo into the film
with no animation and it looked like it was the start of a slideshow ar something with no movement in it.
This shows the before and after of the logo animation. As well as having a wink, I inserted a chime sound effect when the eye
closes just to add a little more emphasis to the animation. The overall look of the logo is very pleasing. The rough style of fill
applied to the lines coincides with the rough appearance of the font and title credits.
10. Logo
There wasn’t really any existing inspiration for my logo idea. The only inspiration is the physical appearance of one of my
group members. As far as I’m aware, no production company logo is similar to this. The idea to turn it into an animation, I
believe, was a good one because many modern day logo’s are animations at the start of the film as it introduces the audience
to the various shots, angles and effects that will be used later in the film. I experimented with inserting the logo into the film
with no animation and it looked like it was the start of a slideshow ar something with no movement in it.
This shows the before and after of the logo animation. As well as having a wink, I inserted a chime sound effect when the eye
closes just to add a little more emphasis to the animation. The overall look of the logo is very pleasing. The rough style of fill
applied to the lines coincides with the rough appearance of the font and title credits.