Highest rated thrillers on Rotten Tomatoes

1.) Citizen Kane
2.) The Third Man
3.) Laura
4.) Gravity
5.) Repulsion
6.) North By Northwest
7.) Rear Window
8.) The Maltese Falcon
9.) The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
10.) Rashomon

The majority of the films on this list are pre-1950's classics. This works in my favour as it would be easier to be inspired by their techniques as most were made on a limited budget. Also I find the suspense in classic thriller movies to be more effective, in turn this makes making my thriller easier as I can more efficiently produce a higher quality thriller at the end of production.

Highest rated thrillers on IMDb

1.) Pulp Fiction
2.) Drishyam
3.) 1
4.) Inception
5.) The Zohar
6.) Waar
7.) Na Maloom Afraad
8.) Baby
9.) Usual Suspects
10.) Se7en

I agree mostly with this list, however most of them I have not watched, specifically 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8. Yet from the ones I have watched I can implement features from them that define them as thrillers, this will in turn make my opening sequence more a thriller so I can hit the mark criteria accurately.

My 4 favourite thriller films of all time

I am going to list 4 of my all time favourite thriller movies and explain how I am going to incorporate parts of them films into my own.

1.) Pulp Fiction - I really enjoy the comical elements in Pulp Fiction, however I am not going to include any in mine as I am not going down that specific path.
2.) Inception - I really like the confusion caused by Inception, I believe it keeps the audience interested. I have implemented the mysterious object in her hand to replicate this.
3.) Se7en - Se7en has a lot of elements that I wished to include into my opening sequence however due to budget issues and lack of a professional actor this was impossible. However I based the tone of my thriller heavily upon this.
4.) The Usual Suspects - I knew from the beginning that it would be hard to include any features of this film into mine, the acting is incredible and the twist at the end really surprised me during my first viewing.

Different sub genres of thrillers

Common sub genres are psychological thrillers, crime thrillers, erotic thrillers and mystery thrillers.
Another common sub genre of thriller is the spy genre which deals with fictional espionage. 
Alfred Hitchcock created some of the most iconic thriller movies to date and he was a bug influence on the way thrillers are made today.
The different genres of horror often overlap with the thriller genre. 
Thrillers tend to be psychological, threatening, mysterious and at times involve larger-scale situations such as espionage and terrorism.

Thriller Research - Conventions of a Thriller

Thrillers heavily stimulate the viewers mood, giving them a sense of dread and anticipation as they do not know what will happen to the protagonist next.
A thriller provides a sudden rush of excitement that drives the main narrative through to the end.
I believe this knowledge will help me improve my short film as I know I need to create tension in order to progress the story and to ensure the viewer does not get bored watching.

Idea for Thriller

During the Christmas holidays I thought I would get in the holiday spirit by watching The Silence of the Lambs. Whilst watching I noticed an extremely effective editing technique in which the protagonist appaears to run through/past the camera. It would be hard to coreograph a similar shot however I will try.

Actor Planning

Actor Planning

Initally I wanted my brother, Jonathan, to be the main actor but he refused as he was camera shy. Secondaly I approached my Dad to see if he would be interested. He was quite skeptical at first but relucatantley agreed eventually, however after a few shots I realised he was not suitable because he looked too old for the character I had in mind and he was not an amazing actor. 

After that I thought I would not be able to find an effective actor so I thought if I told my Dad exactly what shots I wanted and how I wanted them to be filmed then I could act and he could film. That went well but shortly after filming my teacher informed me that this technique would not work as I was meant to be behind the camera and I could in no way prove I had control over the shots (which is completely understandable). So I rescheduled to film mid-January 2015. That meant I had a couple weeks to sort out an appropiate actor and change the story to fit the new actor. 

Eventually my friend Ben agreed to be my protagonist, however on the day of filming he did not show up and he let me down so I sacked him. Fourtanatley my friend Connor agreed to shoot and he did show up.

So after all the mishaps and reshoots I finally have all my footage nessecary to edit. So let the editing begin.

Title Idea

I have just finished watching a film on Netflix called 'Zombies: Wicked Little Things'. Albeit wasn't a AAA title however I noticed a great, subtle technique used in the title sequence. The picture would quickly fade to black to show the names etc. I think this is a great technique to use in my own opening sequence as I am currently having issues with visibility of titles. 

Internet Audience Research

Audiences Targeted By Thrillers

Most thriller films target an audience of adults, 18+, because they tend to include alot of heavy violence and dark subject matters that are essential to progress the story. This is the nature of thriller movies and they dont include violence and swearing for the sake of things, for the most part anyway. Therefore they are inappropraite for small children and anyone sensitive to violence. Most DVDs say on the reserve cover why they are rated 18+. Disaster films fall under the catergory of 'Disaster' however in the case of 'The Day After Tomorrow' as soon as the destruction begins it is clear that it has tranformed into a thriller film, with intense sequences that put you on the edge of your seat. This just goes to show that you can begin your film as lets say a Horror, and end it being a comedy. However that example would be tough to acheive.

Another source says that Thrillers are aimed at an audience who enjoy the mystery and intrigue of a good story with high levels of anticipation. Pyschological Thrillers allow the audience to almost become the detective within the movie and enable them to slove the case with the characters. Some aspects within a pyschological thriller may be distrubing for a younger audience yet these tend to be mental and emotional distraint rather than full blown blood and guts.

My Target Audience

I am going to target an audience of 15+ as I believe this is the perfect balance to make an effective thriller film yet have it available to largest audience, without it being too soft. Also I want to target mainly a male audience because all my characters are male and possibly they will have an easier time connecting with my characters. Although it is entirely possible that females can enjoy my film just as much.

I am also going to target my film to a more mature audience who can wholly appreciate the subject nature. Furthermore my film will be dark with subtle hints of violence, without fully showing it.

Bibliography

Some of my resourses I used are blogs other A-Level students have written, which will help me because they are in the same situation as me and reading about their successes can motivate me and inspire me to do well. Also their expereinces can help me make my Thriller opening better because I have first hand experience of previous students. However I have not copied any ideas and everything I produce will be original and completely from my own mind. I have only used other A-Level students as guidance and used them for their experiences in the same situations. 

http://40thriller2013.wordpress.com/2013/03/06/target-audience-expectations/
http://billiepearsonportfolio.weebly.com/target-audience.html

Questionnaire

I completed a questionnaire and handed it out to my close friends and family for compeletion so I could gather as much infomation as possible about what to include to make my Thriller opening as effective and professional as is within my skill range.I recieved all of my questionnaires back and collected all the data up, unfourtanatley I do not own a photocopier so I am unable to upload a picture however I can type up all the infomation I gathered.

Q1: What is your favourite Thriller film from the list stated?

Pulp Fiction: 4
The Silence of the Lambs: 2
Taken: 1
Usual Suspects: 2
Se7en: 1

From this question I have learnt that the majority of people I asked enjoyed Pulp Fiction more than any other on the list which means I can take conventions and ideas from Pulp Fiction and implement them into my film to make it more effective.

Q2: What is the most effective convention of Thriller films in your opinion?

Quick Cuts: 2
Low Key Lighting: 5
Tense Music: 2
Diegetic Sound of Breathing: 0
Acting: 1

From these results I have learnt that to make an effective and creepy thriller opening I should implement dark shadows and low key lighting.

Q3: Should my opening sequence contain more than one character?

Yes: 4
No: 6

This result did not surprise me as I believe an opening sequence with one character is more effective because the audience feel alone just as the character in the film does. However I will consider using more than one character but it may not be viable as it was hard finding one person to act, nevermind two.

Q4: Do you think Vertigo Pictures and Green Apple Studios are believable names for production companies?

Yes: 8
No: 2

I was surprised by these results as these names to be sound possibly too fake and cheesy. However I am now more drawn to using them as I am failing to think of a better alternative.

Q5: Do you think 'Unanswered' is an effective and overall good title for a Thriller film?

Yes: 5
No: 5

I was also surprised by the answers to this question as I thought Unaswered was a great name. I will consider changing it however I am not sure because I am already changed it from 'The Copernicus Project' which is terrible and I only used it in my draft edit as I could not think of a better alternative.

Research Into The Industry/Genre

 Thrillers

Thrillers are a genre of film that contain various conventions and techniques, these include: excitement, suspense and tension. Thrillers tend to stimulate the viewer, forcing adreneline around their body to hook them into what is happening on screen. Films of this genre tend to be intense, gritty and fast paced.
I can use this knowledge to further help me with my production because I can implement some of these aspects to solidy my film into the genre of thriller.

Subgenres   

Whilst thriller is a broad concept they can be narrowed down into specific sub genres. Some of these include psychological thrillers, crime thrillers, erotic thrillers and mystery thrillers. Another common subgenre of thriller is the spy genre.

What would it take for my film to be recognised by a production company?

I have found a video prodcution company that help younger directors get recognition as larger companies, like Warner Bros. or MGM, would not be interested in small budget, independant movies. The video production company I have found is called 'Agile Films' and they are located in London. On their webstie there is a 'Contact' section that outlines what needs to be done in order to contact the right person so you can get your film noticed by a wider audience. This is an exact quote from their website:
"If you're a director looking for representation, or you want to discuss an idea with our development team, please contact Kristian Brodie."

Bibliography

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thriller_%28genre%29
http://www.agilefilms.com/

Catch Me If You Can - Opening Sequence Analysis

 Catch Me If You Can - Opening Sequence Analysis

The cartoonish style is evident from this screenshot.

Catch Me If You Can sports an impressive title sequence full of beautiful animations that wholly capture the imagination and theme of the movie. What really makes this title sequence memorable is the way its subtly suggests some of the films key themes without making it obvious. 

The fonts used for the title cards are simple yet effective. They are soft and smooth and the animated characters are exaggerated and over-the-top. However, like most films, the positioning of the names and the order in which they appear, suggest greatly the importance of said person.

From analysing Catch Me If You Can’s title sequence I have learned that I can make my title sequence cartoonish and, if I do it well, I can still capture and maintain what makes a thiller title sequence. 

However I am not going to implement much of the conventions used in this title sequence into mine but I believe looking at this title sequence has still been beneficial to me as I am more familiar with different title sequences in the genre of thriller.

Also the cost of producing such a title sequence would be exponential as the amount of hours necessary to animate such a breath-taking piece of animation would be ridiculous. But I maintain the belief that an animated title sequence can be just as effective of showcasing a thriller movie as, lets say, the opening to Fight Club or Se7en.

                                                     

Camera:

The camera used in this opening sequence does not exist in our physical world, the camera is within a computer animation software, however both work similarly. Many techniques are used to effectively transition from one shot to the next but the ones I noticed that are used more frequently are standard zoom and pan. These are used to show the simplistic nature which is clearly trying to be put across by Steven Spielberg in this opening title sequence.

Sound:

The opening portion to the opening sequence contains light hearted and soft instruments. Such as slow guitar riffs and soft piano notes. These are effective at calming the audience which could be argued is not the intention of Thriller films. However this is how Catch Me If You Can is different to most thriller films, it does not rely on dark lighting or scary music to be an effective thriller.

Then as the opening begins to come to an end the music changes to a more dark and ominous tone. The change is subtle and effective and completely changes the atmosphere. Perhaps the director chose to change the tone of the music to remind the audience they are about to watch a thriller film and not an upbear childrens comedy.

Editing:

Editing is used throughout the duration of the opening sequence to suggest urgency through the use of quick cuts. It could be argued that the director chose to do this because the urgent nature in which the shots are put together is a key convention throughout the film as the main theme is fraud.

Mise-En-Scene:

There are two prominent main colours used throughout the opening sequence, these are blue and black. It could be said that these two colours suggest different themes that are used in the film. Blue could represent the light hearted nature in the film and black could represent the subject nature of crime and fraud.

List of Titles (In Order):

Dreamworks Pictues Presents

A Parkes/MacDonald Production

A Steven Spielberg Film

Leonardo DiCaprio

Tom Hanks

Catch Me If You Can

Christopher Walken

Martin Sheen

Nathalie Baye

Amy Adams

James Brolin

Brian Howe

Frank John Hughes

Steven Eastin

Chris Ellis

John Finn

Casting By Debra Zane, CSA

Co-Producer Devorah Moos-Hankin

Based Upon The Book By Frank W. Abagnale With Stan Redding

Titles By Kuntzel Deygas

Music By John Williams

Costume Designer Mary Zophres

Film Editor Michael Kahn, A.C.E.

Production Designer Jeannine Oppewall

Director Of Photography Janusz Kaminski, ASC

Co-Executive Producer Daniel Lupi

Executive Producers Barry Kemp, Laurie MacDonald

Executuve Producers Michel Shane, Tony Romano

Produced By Steven Spielberg, Walter F. Parkes
Screenplay By Jeff Nathanson

Directed By Steven Speilberg

Sweeney Todd - Opening Sequence Analysis

Sweeney Todd - Opening Sequence Analysis

The title sequence to Sweeney Todd is excellently made and exquisitely directed. From the cartoonish blood to the dramatic music everything screams Tim Burton. This sequence really nails the bloody nature of the film yet the cartoonish style in which everything is presented. This is, in my opinion, one of the more well-made opening sequence to a thriller in recent years.

The font used for the titles is simplistic yet edgy and stands out. The titles do not move or fly onto the screen they simply fade in and fade out. The speed at which the titles appear on the screen increases as it nears the end and the position of the titles depends on the importance. For example Tim Burton's directorial credit appears largely in the center of the screen whilst someone arguable less important, like Director Of Photography Dariusz Wolski, ASC, appears to the left of the screen.

I believe watching and analyzing this opening sequence has helped me understand what I need to include in mine because I now have a better knowledge of what credits to include to make mine more authentic and believable. 

 

Camera:

The camera pans through the streets of London, the image is slightly cartoonish which suggests an element of fantasy. From this we can gather that the film doesn’t take its self too seriously, yet suggesting the dark subject nature and violent themes. Tim Burton has decided to do this because it is his niche, it also works very well with the story of Sweeney Todd.

The camera looks through a window at the infamous Sweeney Todd chair when a drop of blood falls onto the window. Suggests violence and also gives the chair negative connotations as we instantly associate the chair with blood. However you could intrepet this particular scene as the blood representing Sweeney Todds blood, perphaps giving the audience an insight into the finale of the film before the credits have even ended.

Sound:

During the opening sequence the distinct sound of an organ can be heard throughout the majority of the sequence. Whilst an organ is typical of the era in which the film is set, it also has a timeless, eerie sound that chills most people to the bones, therefore perfectly suitable for such a violent thriller.

Towards the ending of the opening sequence the music begins to intensify. It quickly picks up pace and becomes louder, quicker and scarier before rounding off for an imense finale. The intention of this technique is to get the audience of the edge of their seats before they have even started the main portion of the film.

Editing:

There is a shot of a river that clearly appears to be flowing completely with blood. Editing has been used in this shot to make the blood to appear cartoonish, yet whilst making the surroundings seem lifelike. However it is clear to the audience that the surroundings are not physical sets either, rather computer animation. Yet they have deliberatley decided to make the flowing river of blood look more fake than anything else in the shot.

Mise-En-Scene:

Black shadows are a prodominant feature throughout the opening sequence. Tim Burton has decided to dominate the whole portion of the opening sequence with dark, eerie shadows. These have a negative effect on the audience, in terms of mental state. They fill the audiences mind with dread and tension so the fact he has used this technique straight away from the beginning shows us this is something he wants intends to happen.

Red is also a dominant colour, like black, that fills the entirty of the opening seuqence with fear. The main use for the colour red is for blood, which creates negative connatations for anything related to the colour red and also creates fear in the audience as most people do not like to see violence in movies. However is Tim Burtons case he can make the blood look fake which helps him keep the film not too disturbing.

List of titles used (in order):

Dreamworks Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures Presents

A Parkes/MacDonald Production

A Zanuck Company Production

A Tim Burton Film

Johnny Depp

Helena Bonham Carter

Alan Rickman

Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street

Timothy Spall

And Sacha Baron Cohen

Casting By Susie Figgis

Music And Lyrics By Stephen Sondheim

Based On The Musical By Stephen Sondheim And Hugh Wheeler

Originally Staged By Harold Prince

From An Adaptation By Christopher Bond                                    

Music Supervised And Conducted By Paul Gemignani

Orchestrated By Jonathan Tunick

Music Producer Mike Highim

Co-Producer Katterli Frauenfelder

Costume Designer Colleen Atwood

Edited By Chris Lebenzon, A.C.E

Production Designed By Dante Ferretti

Director Of Photography Dariusz Wolski, ASC

Executive Producer Patrick McCormick

Produced By Walter Parkes, Laurie MacDonald, John Logan

Produced By Richard D. Zanuck

Screenplay By John Logan

Directed By Tim Burton