This document discusses techniques for creating an effective thriller film opening, including establishing characters as good or bad, using costumes to suggest danger or intelligence, utilizing a variety of shots to reflect mental states or create tension, and employing editing and sound design skills to build suspense. It draws inspiration from films like Sixth Sense, Inception, Silence of the Lambs, and I Am Legend.

2.  The film Sixth Sense explores how a
psychological theme can have influence
on the audience and create fear,
anticipation or horror.
 We will try to reflect this skill in our
piece by also using a venerable
character (such as the young boy in the
movie) that the audience can feel
sympathy towards.

3.  Most thriller films rely on dark colours to
reflect not only the genre but also the
characters emotions and personalities.
Colours can also be used to help build tension.
For example the colour black could suggest
evil or crime. Also the colour red could have
connotations of blood, violence or even
murder.
 One influence that we could use for colour is
the film ‘ se7en.’ This movie often uses dull
grey colours to express the emotions of the

4.  A thriller film opening must include clear characters
whom can be established as good or bad almost
immediately. We want our opening to be as realistic as
possible and believable for the audience, however we will
use costume effectively to suggest danger.
 One film that also used realistic costumes to create
threatening/innocent/powerful characters in ‘inception.’
This films main character is seen wearing smart suits
and dark shirts. This suggests sophistication and
intelligence s well as the wealth of the character.
 Our protagonist is going to be wearing army clothes,
similar to the character in “I am legend” as it
immediately informs the audience of the protagonists
past so the character is developed quickly an a

5.  Thriller films are often associated with having a
wide variety of shots used to create action scenes
of reflect the mental state of the characters. Also
sometimes a focus pull can be used to expose or
hide the characters.
 One example of a film that is known particularly
well for its diverse use in shot types is ‘inception.’
We will use inspiration from this movie by
creating a variation of shots and fitting the tense
moments with shots that fit the situation but also
add variety whilst still looking realistic.
 We are taking influence from this by suggesting
the confused mental state of the protagonist. We
are doing this by having some of our shots tilted
creating the image of disconnection.

6.  Editing is used by the director purposely
to enhance the scenes in the thriller
films. They can use manipulation to
make the audience prefer certain
characters to another or to show a
‘stalker character.
 The film ‘ silence of the lambs’
effectively uses skills such as cross
cutting and dissolves to create a eerie
and suspense full thriller.

7.  Sound is one of the most important elements
of a thriller movies. It is pivotal that the
correct sound is used to create a sting in the
movie or to effectively enhance the building
of tension. Also diegetic sound is necessary
to maintain a realistic film for the audience.
 Some example of film that effectively uses
sound it ‘reservoir dogs.’ This popular film
has a memorable soundtrack that leaves it
cast with sound motifs.
 Our thriller will involve a number of musical
stings to highlight particular moments that
are important for the audience.

8.  When considering the storyline of our
thriller it was important that we chose a
style in which its characters could be
established quickly and which its
storyline could be left undiscovered.
 Our main inspiration for our post
apocalypse style thriller is ‘I am legend’
as the character in that movie also has
to experience the loneliness and
resourcefulness of living alone in a