The document discusses how a short film used and challenged conventions of psychological thriller films. It analyzed films like Shutter Island and Cape Fear to understand typical conventions like themes of death, strange characters, something unusual happening, and a confident main character. It also discusses how the short film employed similar conventions through close-ups, lighting, point-of-view shots, and generating suspense rather than showing the actual event. By basing some scenes on Cape Fear, the short film also challenged stereotypes to suggest a more edgy genre.

1. IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR
MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP
OR CHALLENGE FORMS AND
CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA
PRODUCTS?

2. Before we created our 2 minute short film, we decided to research existing films
which are also psychological thrillers. We looked at shutter island and cape fear in
detail so we were aware of the typical conventions of our media.
When researching these films we realised that they all have a range of conventions
in common such as:
• Themes of death
• Strange characters that don’t fit in
• Something unusual that’s happening
• A confident main character
• Fast editing
• Flashbacks

3. From my research I found non diegetic sound plays a key role in the genre of
psychological thriller, being able to raise tension to a crucial point. Alternatively,
silence can also be used to increase suspense, as the simple diegetic soundscape
of a scene suddenly is broken by the use of a stinger. This stinger can cause a large
audience reaction.
This is not to say I neglected any other conventions of the psychological thriller
genre. I also noted and analysed the atmospheric use of lighting, the use of telling
the story through a certain point of view and reaction shots to generate a sense of
intensity. I also found that many psychological thriller use a large amount of
suspense to create the thriller rather than portraying the event itself.

4. We used similar conventions to shutter
island, as they support our genre of
psychological thriller. As illustrated, we both
used close ups for effect as you can see
more emotion on the characters face. This
helps to set the scene.
Also, in cape fear there are many scenes that
we based our own on. The visual effect of
these shots show women in a different light.
This use of breaking stereotypes suggests a
more edgy genre than just drama.