This document discusses conventions of psychological dramas through analyzing two film scenes. For the first film Memento, the nonlinear narrative is a challenge to conventions. Developed conventions include the character having amnesia requiring tattoos and photos. For the second film The Black Swan, the setting developing Nina's torment and close-ups developing her frightened expression are used. Challenged is the plot having a ballerina as the victim hearing talking drawings.

1. Assignment 13:
Conventions of Psychological Drama
Judy Ibelgauptiene
Katia Martins
Leticia Silva
Noor Naoum

2. Initial mind map of conventions

3. Conventions of a psychological drama
Details
plot
Narrative
Characters
Film examples
Use: something usually happens that messes with the characters
emotional being and causes a trauma.
Develop: the person that was suppose to be a friend ends up
leading them to a worse state.
Challenge: when the character has split personality.
Max Payne
Use: person usually explains their story in first person.
Develop: doesn't always follow three part, as flashbacks are
included
Challenge: isn't linear and may be used to make the audience
feel what the character has to go through.
Memento
Memento
Use: a person with a psychological problem who is the main
focus of the film.
Develop: two main characters, one person with a psychological
problem and the other is affected by the problem.
Challenge: you don't know the person is facing a psychological
problem as its masked like in the black swan where the other girl
is actually the main girl and she is just imagining it all.
The Black Swan
Memento
The Black Swan
Orphan
The Fourth Kind
The Black Swan

4. Details
Camera
techniques
Sounds
The Conversation
The Cuckoos Nest
Challenge: wrestling arena, ballet studio, uni/school
MES
Use: town/city and home.
Develop: hospitals , buildings and streets.
Setting
Film examples
The Black Swan
The Wrestler
Use: Costume gives them equality, as they look like a normal
person.
Develop: Characters' are more sophisticated than normal people
(through body language and facial expressions).
Challenge: Colourful colours used, which is unlike a dark
psychological film.
3 Colours Red
Use: mid shots and close ups are used to show facial
expressions.
Develop: two shots compare non psychological and
psychological.
Challenge: point of view of psycho in their prospective.
Memento
Use: tense music and mood
Develop: 1st person narration, sound in slow motion and they
can hear their own heart beat and things within their mind
(sound effect)
Challenge: sounds from objects in the scene.
Hannibal
Sixth Sense
The Wrestler
Max Payne
Taxi Driver
The Black Swan
Five Easy Pieces

5. Conventions in a film
Memento
Description:
The last 10 minutes of the film
Memento. However since the film
has a non linear narrative this is
actually the beginning of the
story.
(By Katia & Judy)
Black Swan
Description:
The scene when Nina walks into
the room the drawings start
talking to her she starts panicking
and loses self control.
(By Noor & Leticia)

6. Film 1, Scene 1 Conventions The lighting used is
This bit is conventional as the
guy on the left is trying to help
the main character but instead
he is misleading him. This is
quite normal in a
Psychological film.
The convention here is the wild body language, as
the guy is holding the other guy showing he has
something wrong with him psychologically.
Close ups
are used
throughout
to show the
facial
expression
of the
character.
This is a
convention as
the setting is
familiar to the
character and is
urban.
The narrative in this film isn’t linear as its backwards
because the film itself is a psychological film so they
want the audience to link with the main character.
a convention as the
lighting tends to be
mysterious and
tense.
This is a convention as the
plot of a psychological film is
usually based on a trauma or
past experience.
Flashbacks of past is one
convention of a
psychological drama.

7. (By Katia & Judy)
Scene 1 – Use/Develop/Challenge
Explanation of use, develop or challenge
Plot
The plot was developed because the
character was in a hotel room isolated from
everyone else and you would expect to see
that in a common psychological drama.
Narrative
The narrative is challenged as the story is
not told in linear as it is not written in
chronological order meaning that the
beginning is actually the end.
Characters
The character from memento is a
developed character because he has to
take on different characteristics because he
has amnesia– therefore he needs to tattoo
his body or take photographs so he doesn’t
forget what has recently happened.
Photo Evidence

8. DEVELOP (Setting)
Usually psychological dramas are set in places like
the bedroom where the characters feel
comfortable this is developed because instead of
the room comforting her it’s the place that is
tormenting her.
USE (MES)
The characters would usually
have a frightened facial
expression to express that they
are scared.
Challenged
(plot)
The plot is
challenged
because in
a
psychologic
al drama
you would
not expect
a ballerina
to be the
victim and
having the
fact of
drawings
talking to
her.
Use (Sound)
You would usually hear
the character screaming
or telling whatever it is
that is making her going
crazy to stop.
Film 2 Scene 1 Conventions
Used (camera)
in psycho dramas there
is usually mid shots to
show facial
expressions, body
language and gesture
to portray the
characters feelings.
Use (MES)
Psychological dramas
consist of the characters
feeling frightened and
using the body gesture
of blocking their ears to
feel like the problem will
go away.
(By Noor & Leticia)
Characters (camera)
Usually would not
really see what the
characters are seeing
and it uses a point of
view shot to help the
audience engage and
understand the way
she is feeling.

9. (By Noor & Leticia)
Explanation ofUSE/DEVELOP/CHALLENGE
setting
The setting develops the convention of most
characters in a psychological drama usually go to a
place where they feel comfortable and can isolate
themselves from the world but the fact that there are
talking pictures gave a sense of development because
a place of comfort is supposed to be quiet and
peaceful.
MES
The MES also develops the convention of most
characters in a psychological thriller because when
Nina screamed ‘stop!’ at the pictures she looked
terrified and confused which is found a lot in
psychological thrillers
Camera
techniques
The camera techniques also develop the convention
of a psychological drama because the close up
portrays Nina’s facial expression with a close up shot
which allows us to understand the state the character
is in. The close up also showed us how afraid she was
and her vulnerability of what's going on around her.
Sound
The sound also develops the convention of a
psychological drama because when Nina is
surrounded by talking images she starts to feel
unstable hearing echoes in her head and voices
talking over each other which could show her mental
state and her disorientation .
Plot
The plot is challenged because you would not expect
to see a psychological drama based on an innocent
ballerina’s life. You also wouldn’t pictures to be
speaking to her (inside of her mind) psychologically.
PHOTO EVIDENCE