This document discusses the codes and conventions of the thriller genre in film. It outlines conventions for camera work, mise-en-scene, sound, editing, characters, and titles. For camera work, thrillers commonly use tracking shots, close-ups, and low or high camera angles. Mise-en-scene features dark costumes for antagonists, ordinary clothes for protagonists, and low-key lighting. Sound utilizes a slow-building soundtrack to create tension. Editing employs jump cuts, cross-cutting, and continuous shots. Characters typically feature a brave male protagonist and an antagonist seeking revenge. Titles adopt a spooky font.

2. Codes and Conventions
Definition
 Codes and conventions are used together in any
study of genre – it is not enough to discuss a
technical code used such as camera work, without
saying how it is conventionally used in genre.
 For example, the technical code of lighting is used in
some way in all film genres. It is a convention of the
horror genre that side and back lighting is used to
create mystery and suspense – an integral part of
any horror film.

3. Camera
 Camera movement - Tracking and Pan shots is what’s commonly used in the
beginning of thriller films, particularly a certain group of people who we should be
interested in as the audience. An example is the bank heist scene in The Dark
Knight(DK) where the camera tracks the group at certain points. Zooming in and out
was a rarity that was only seen in DK during an action scene.
 Framing of shot - The most typical shot used in thriller films seems to be the close
up, greatly used in both films Se7en and Kill Bill volume 1 to build suspense and
mystery in the beginning. Long shots have also been a commonality among thriller
films being used in both DK and T2 to set the scene and show the audience where
the action will be taking place in the upcoming events of the film.
 Camera angles - Things that seem to be quite common are the low levels of framing
and the high angles at certain points, the high angle is used mainly to show those in
a powerful position but they might also be used such as in T2 with the first arrival of
the terminator shown to be in control and having most of the power. There seems to
be a main character(s) in the beginning which seems to have the majority of power
and this is shown through the camera angles.

4. Mise en scene
 The location is important for the film because it help the
audience establish the theme.
 Costumes;
 Antagonist will be in dark clothes if you see them.
 Protagonist will be in ordinary everyday clothes.
 Lighting is often low key.
 We have used some of the codes and conventions for a thriller
in our film such as the low key lighting, however for the
costumes some of the undercover police wear black whereas
some didn’t, so it was more of a mixed match group.

5. Sound
 Music is essential in any film to understand the mood of
the characters and hint at a significant part in the film.
 In a thriller it adds suspense and tension. It will often start
at a slow paves and the then build up to make the shots
more dramatic for the audience.
 We also followed the conventions of the thriller genre by
adding a low key slow non-diegetic soundtrack layer to
our film. This followed the conventions of a thriller film
because it added the tension to the audience.

6. Editing
 The director will include lots of jump cuts because there will be
things happening that the audience is unaware of but is
essential for the film to make sense.
 Cross cutting is a key point in editing as it is used to build
suspense which is essential for a thriller.
 Continues editing is used to help the audience understand the
film better.
 Our film uses these techniques as we follow the story of the
undercover police and the terrorist scientists. We used jump
cuts and continues editing to follow the codes and conventions
of the thriller genre.

7. Characters
 The protagonist is often a brave male who seeks to
restore the equilibrium.
 The antagonist will have a hidden identity that the
audience will uncover as the film progresses. Often
the antagonist goes out for revenge from a past
event.
 Our film flips these conventions as our film is shot
from the perspective of the antagonist.

8. Titles
 For our titles we added a spooky, sketchy kind of
edge to it by choosing a font based on those criteria.
We believed that this would work well for our font
and follow the conventions of a thriller film.