Evaluation

EvaluationJake WisemanIn what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Our thriller film, Silencer, was created through the inspiration of many film directors and their work. Arguably, Alfred Hitchcock was one of the most influential directors in the history of the thriller genre of film. We used some of his techniques to create tension in our piece but we also challenged some of his ideas as we felt it would benefit our film further.

Alfred Hitchcock

Hitchcock produced many well known thrillers and many had a very limited budget. Similarly to Hitchcock, we had to work with little budget to create a quality piece of film.

Hitchcocks ideas inspired us to include them in our work. Having seen many of his films I was able to see what I thought worked well and how they could be used to develop our thriller piece. The following page displays some of his most well known ideas and how we selected which to use and which to challenge.

Alfred Hitchcocks ideasSilence for TensionHitchcock believed that silence was a brilliant tool for creating tension and many of his films feature moments of silence before a dramatic event. We challenged this idea when filming and editing our own thriller. The main reason for this was because we were only doing the opening 2 minutes of the film. We opted to use sound effects and music to build tension and we felt that this worked well for our production, silencer.

Music for TensionAlong with tension, music was something Hitchcock thought could be used to great effect to generate suspense for the audience in his thrillers. Similarly we felt that the correct soundtrack would increase the levels of suspense in our thriller and this is why we made sure the sounds and music we used matched the on screen action well. The music in our film is slow at the beginning as it reflected on the build up. Its pace then increased to match the action on screen during the chase scene. Using the soundtrack with the drum beat gave the resemblance of a heartbeat, this travels through the audience and makes them feel a sense of unease which is what we want while they watch out dramatic thriller film.

Mistaken IdentityHitchcocks films often used the idea of mistaken identity. In psycho for example Bates mother is portrayed as the murderer however we later discover that Norman Bates himself if the psycho murderer. In our thriller plot we used a similar idea. D.I.Wiseman (one of the detectives working on the cases) is actually the killer but only he knows. This plot twist adds an element of mystery to the film and makes the audience feel less sure about the characters and their true feelings.Hitchcocks ideas continuedSharp piece of soundTo add to the tension in some of his films scenes, Hitchcock often used a sharp sound or piece of music (often played on a strings instrument) before a dramatic event. One example of this is when the detective in psycho is stabbed at the top of the stairs. There is a moment of silence followed by the short, sharp burst of sound from a strings instrument. We did not have any pieces of strings instrument to highlight key dramatic events however we added in a soundtrack which matched the action on screen. The sound track (which contained drums and some strings) was something we tried to use to make the chase scene look faster. By having the drum beat in time with a lot of the running we were able to maintain the pace of the chase through sound.

Spying and watchingThe master of suspense as he was also known, used to include many scenes were a character is watching another without the watched knowing. This technique was used by Hitchcock to create the idea of surveillance and gave a different perspective on many of the characters through their actions. Rear window (a 1954 Hitchcock mystery thriller) features this shot heavily. The majority of the film is shot from the L.B Jeffries apartment window. Throughout the film he sees strange things in his local neighbourhood. The same filming location throughout the film reflects how isolated Jeffries is due to his injury which left him in a wheelchair. However, in our film we did not choose to include much of this spying type shots because we felt the beginning of our crime thriller, which includes a chase scene, should be fast and action packed and therefore this shot may not have been the correct one to use.

Hitchcocks ideas continuedMacGuffinsAlfred Hitchcock's movies often contained an object or device which drove the plot and were of great interest to the films characters. His most notable examples included the wedding ring in Rear Window (1954), the microfilm in North by Northwest (1959) and the $40,000 in the envelope in Psycho (1960). We used this technique in our film with the use of the notepad at the end of our first 2 minutes. The notepad is significant in our crime thriller because it is the thing that the detective thinks is a gun before he shoots her, its then opened to reveal the girl was related to the murdered child and was performing a private investigation into the case. Throughout our film the detectives will refer back to the notepad for any evidence they can find.

Empathizing with the villainMany of the villains in Hitchcock's films had a certain amount of empathy from the audience due to their troubling past or current situation. The villains often received the most empathy when they were on the cusp of being caught. In our film the detective that is also the murderer is presented as being a kind and caring person at the beginning and then the audiences thoughts will change as the true identity of the character is revealed. However, the moment in the film when the detectives psychological problem is uncovered could once again change the audiences opinion on the man. I think this change in feelings works well because the audience is constantly left feeling unsure on who they can trust. This adds to the ambiguity of the film and creates more suspense as the audience try to piece together various pieces of evidence.

Christopher Nolan

Nolan has produced many extremely gripping thrillers. In 2005 the first of the 3 batman movies was produced and this film alone made over $370,000,000 profit. Having filmed from the age of 7, he is now a highly acclaimed director and is regarded as one of the best directors in history for the thriller genre.

Some of Nolans techniques are so iconic we decided to try and recreate a selection of them in our thriller film. Using camera angles, editing techniques and work on the credits we have aimed to reflect on some of Nolans ideas in a hope they would increase the professional aesthetic of our media product.

Another famous thriller director who provided us with inspiration for our work was batman trilogy director, Christopher Nolan. Myself and the others in our group had seen many of his films and we all agreed that his directing created numerous classics. Looking at his work in comparison to what we wanted to create we were able to use some of his conventions in our work but we also decided to challenge some.

Nolans techniquesCharacter Hand Close UpsChristopher Nolan often used a close up shot of a characters hands to introduce them. For example, in Nolans film, Memento (2000), the character Leonard is holding a polaroid photograph in his hand very close to the camera. In our film we aimed to include a close up of a hand to begin with. We originally filmed the first scene with the detectives hands in front of the map but had to cut it due to editing issues and practicality.

Leonard holding polaroid in Memento

Close up of detectives hand in our thrillerProtagonist forced into hiding identityMany of Nolans protagonists have to hide their true identity in his films. They do this to because they have something about them that the other characters must know. Sometimes in his films, Nolan allows the audience to know what the protagonist is hiding but sometimes it is just as much of a mystery to them as it is to everyone else. In our thriller, the main character, D.I.Wiseman, has to hide his true identity in order to keep is job and avoid being arrested. He has to cover his tracks and ensure nobody discovers that he is the murderer.Nolans techniques continuedCross cutting scenes of parallel actionThis is arguably one of Christopher Nolans most successful techniques in film. The cross cutting of shots that are happening simultaneously is something many directors wouldnt be able to pull of, yet Nolan can and he uses it well. Inception, a film about the mind in the dream state, uses this complex technique in the last few scenes of the film. Nolan uses this to build tension and create a climax. When planning our thriller we decided that this technique would be something we werent going to utilize due to its complicated workings and our limited time. However, we felt that if we were to go on and make the whole film we would try and use this technique in scenes where tension and suspense needs to be created.

FlashbacksThe use of flashbacks was a regular piece in Nolans work. He often used flashbacks to give the audience a better understanding of the events or to put something into perspective. In our thriller we filmed a flashback which would allow the audience to see what actually happened but would not show them the killer. This would have created a sense of dramatic irony because the characters in the media piece wouldnt have known as much as the audience. Although, because the flashback didnt work very well and made our opening sequences tempo too slow we had to cut it out. Once again, if we were creating the whole film we would have incorporated it in.Locations Well constructed locations are vital in forming a quality thriller film. The genre often requires suitable scenery and props to allow for tension to be produced. Many thriller films we, as a group, have seen use location very effectively, using it to further develop a specific emotion or feeling for either the characters or the audience.

I was inspired by the Taken trilogy which used mise-en-scene to produce an authentic look in many of their shots. I wanted to source the best possible locations for out media product so that we could create a piece of work that looked professional and well constructed. A few weeks prior to filming we went cycling around parts of Norfolk to see if we could find any good locations for filming. We discovered an abandoned house with a derelict darn and this gave us the idea of using an old, large building in our work*.

Our thriller film opening contained a lot of the thriller genre conventions. Mise-en-scene is a large factor in the creation of tension and suspense in thriller films. We used the idea of large open areas that often leave the characters appearing vulnerable and isolated. One example of this open space location was the warehouse where we filmed the closing moments of our opening sequence. There were also some filming environments we used to increase the feeling of tension for the audience, I will discuss and present them on the next few slides.

*to see the full risk assessment from the day of location hunting please use the following link: Risk AssessmentThe main location for our opening sequence was the forest/woodland environment. The natural scenery contrasted nicely with the harsh brutality of murder and the provided a good backdrop and surroundings for a chase scene.

We had different set ups within the forest , one being the crime scene set up at the beginning of the opening sequence. To create this we used crime scene tape and markers, which I bought online. The props made the crime seen look more realistic and believable to the audience. To aid the props we also had some extras who featured as a crime scene investigator, a forensic photographer and a forensic reporter. Once we were happy with the positioning of everything and everyone we set up the camera and began filming.

On the right I have inserted a picture of what our crime scene set up looked like from behind the lens. When directing I tried to place everyone and everything in a way that created a well balanced image and used the grid rule to create various focal points within the shot.

I also angled the camera so that it would pick up on the incredible shadows created by the tree trunks and other actors and actresses.

Woodland/Forest environment

Our inspiration for the woodland environment mainly came from films such as The Hunger Games, Harry Potter and The Woman in Black which all use forests and dark woodlands to create a tense and eerie atmosphere.

Using the sunlight through the tress also gave some beautifully formed long shadows and this added to the effect. I really liked the settings we managed to film in and I think the locations were arguably one of the best components in our piece. We also experimented with black and white (below, right).

Woodland/Forest environment

Harry Potter Deathly Hallows Part 1The Woman in BlackThe Hunger Games

Warehouse Having found the abandoned house when we went cycling we decided it would be good to use a building of a similar aesthetic in our film. Charlie, in our group, knew about a large derelict warehouse in his village and we were able to go there and shoot a lot of film in there.

We loved the warehouse environment because it had a naturally eerie atmosphere and looked slightly dodgy which reflects on the strange acts performed by the psychologically troubled detective in our thriller. Once we had found a way in we surveyed the large building and found suitable places to position the camera and somewhere to shoot the final scene.

Before we used the warehouse we checked online to see who owned the large building. We soon discovered that the building had one previous owner but was now abandoned and had no owner. Therefore, we were able to go inside and begin filming.

Characters Another convention found within the genre of thriller films is that of the characters and cast within the film. Many films cast a female actress as the victim as they seem more vulnerable. We decided to follow this convention by having the two murdered people played by female actresses.

On the other hand, we challenged one of Hitchcocks ideas, that Blondes make the best victim, because one of our murdered cast members has brown hair and the other a dark purple shade. Despite us challenging this convention we felt that our cast members were suitably selected and provided a detailed and professional looking sequence.

Victim 1 Female, Dark Brown HairVictim 2 Female, Dark Purple HairCharacters For the two detectives in our film, myself and my friend Charlie (who is also in my media group) best suited the roles and therefore we were the two main cast members in the thriller opening. I performed the role as the bad detective, with the psychological problem that leads him into wanting to murder the young girls he sees. I made sure I starred in the film to perform a cameo role and also because I understood exactly what I wanted from the shots it was easier for me to act rather than having to explain to someone else who may not have performed the task as I would have liked.

Me and Charlie felt we would be the best men for the job of the detectives because we were both able to participate in the chase scene and both had similar ideas of what the characters would be like from the very beginning.

We decided we would wear white shirts with black trousers, a tie and a dark coat. The outfits I selected for the detectives were inspired by Mark Ruffalos in the film Now you see me. I felt that the smart attire gives the detectives in our film the look of authority and power.

Mark Ruffalo in Now You See MeMyself, starring in SilencerMy outfit for SilencerCharactersI really wanted to make sure that the crime scene set up looked as genuine as possible and to do this I asked some friends to perform as extras.

We had a CSI who was examining the body in one of the shots, a forensic photographer who was taking pictures of the body and a forensic reporter who was taking notes from the interview by the detectives at the scene of the crime. The images below show how the crime scene looked in the shot and I hope you are able to see my attention to detail with the crime scene markers, tape and costumes.

Sound One convention of thriller films is the use of silence. We did not use silence in our thriller opening sequence as we wanted to challenge this idea. Instead we used a powerful soundtrack and various sound effects to build tension. The sound of the gunshot towards the end of the sequence instantly tells the audience someone has been shot. We decided to have a black, blank screen when the gunshot sound effect is played as this creates more questions for the audience. The few seconds around the gunshot tell the reader what may have happened rather than telling them. I believe the black screen also makes the gunshot seem more powerful because the jump cut matched with the sound makes the noise sound even more powerful. I really liked our use of sound and editing in this shot and I think it worked really well.

The shot before the gunshot sound effect and the black screenSound Another sound effect we used in the build up to the gunshot was a heartbeat. This sound effect has been used in multiple films as a way to show tension in a persons feelings. We started the heartbeat when the music ends, just as the young girl turns around, this makes the audience think the heartbeat belongs to her. However, the heartbeat is still going after she is shot with the pistol and therefore the audience will be shocked in finding out it was the detectives heartbeat. On top of the shock the audience will start wondering why the detectives heart was racing and may hint that he is hiding something. This begins the series of moments throughout the film where the audience are left feeling unsure on the true identity of Detective Inspector Wiseman.

Before the shooting we also decided to have a close up of the detective to show emotions in their eyes and facial expressions. We applied a focus blur effect to some of the shots prior to the pistol fire too as this reflected on the hazy thoughts of the detective and suggests to the audience that something is wrong in his head.

The shot before the gunshot sound effect and the black screen

The shot in which the heartbeat sound effect beginsThe blurred shot giving the effect of unclear thoughtsSound Alfred Hitchcock and many other famous directors of thriller films believed that moments of tension could be capitalized upon with a sharp piece of sound. In the first few moments of our opening sequence we see the, later murdered, hooded female step on a stick. The stick snaps and this short sharp noise draws the attention of the detectives and initiates the chase scene. The convention of sharp, loud or dramatic sounds is used in James Watkins thriller The woman in Black when Arthur Kipps (played by Daniel Radcliffe reaches out and touches the window of the house and as he contacts the pain the woman in blacks face appears and there is a loud scream. The loud and sudden noise makes the audience jump and creates further tension because the audience anticipate the next moment of drama.

Hooded female snapping stick in SilencerDaniel Radcliffe touching window in The Woman In BlackSound Our soundtrack is built up of drums and some string instruments. From the start it creates a rhythm which matches the action on screen but also builds up tension. To ensure the music and film synchronized with each other we kept the shots short and cut them into 2 and 3 second clips so that the pace of the images kept up with the beat of the soundtrack.

We also matched key pieces of the soundtrack with certain parts of the film. For example, at the beginning of the chase scene there is a low angle close up of the girls foot. As the foot hits the ground there is a loud drum beat in the soundtrack. This was not a coincident. We carefully positioned each shot so it would match up well with the sound to produce a media product that flowed and maintained its pace.

Also, we had the introduction of string instruments at the point where the chase is taken into a more open environment. I wanted to do this because I think the new instrument equalled the fresh new backdrop which emphasised the change of direction and location of the chase. Having also included a slow motion section when myself and Charlie vault the log I felt the music should speed out of the shot along with the effect. So as the slow motion accelerated back out the music also increased in tempo.

Foot at start of chase, drum beatChange of location and instrumentEnd of slow-mo, faster musicCamera Shots In our thriller we wanted to use a variation of camera angles to give the audience as many angles for perspective as possible. Also the different camera angles created a more interesting visual image of the onscreen action whereas having similar angles all the time would be dull and would not appeal to our target audience.

To vary the different camera shots we used all of the following:Wide angle shotsLow angle shotsHigh angle shotsGround shotsOver the shoulder shotsPoint of View shots (POV shots)Tracking shotsPanning shotsClose Up shotsExtreme close up shots

The variation in camera shots means that there is a constantly changing view on the chase and allows the chase to be the length it is. However, if we were to use a similar camera angle over and over again the chase would seem very dull and the audience may lose interest.

Camera Shots

Low Angle Shot

Our use of a wide angle shot for the end of the chase sequence was inspired by a lot of the scenes in Skyfall;. The shots in the bond film often show 007 in a large open area which shows the action going on but also gives a good representation of the location. Our shot does this because it highlights the hooded girl, the two detectives and shows the open warehouse which creates a sense of vulnerability for the girl.

During the chase scene we used a low angle shot of the detectives jumping over a gap. I liked the low angle shot from Inglorious Basterds because of the trees in the background and the subject being seen in front. Often low angle shots are used to show a persons power or to make them seem scary. However, we used the shot to convey the speed of the chase and to maintain the high level of action that was being shown on screen.

21Camera Shots

High Angle ShotGround Shot

This shot during our chase scene was one of our favourite shots in the whole of our opening sequence. We love it so much because its quite different and it shows the detectives running/jumping into shot which looks dynamic and works well in terms of maintaining the pace of the sequence. It was inspired from a shot in Now You See Me where a detective jumps over a wall in a chase scene. This matched well with the chase in our film and therefore I felt it would work really well.

High angle shots are often used to show a character who is vulnerable or who lacks power. The black and white image on the left is a still taken from the Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho. It shows a person moments before they are killed and the high angle represents them as weak and powerless. We used a high angle shot to track the teenager during the chase scene as it showed her vulnerability. We put it near a low angle shot of the two detectives when editing the opening sequence to create a contrast between the power and vulnerability.

Camera ShotsTracking ShotPanning Shot

We used the tracking shot in the warehouse scene to follow the detectives through the eerie environment. This looked very good because it gave a representation of the speed of the detectives and to show the location through the character and his actions. A similar shot is used in Run All Night to create tension and convey the action on screen,

We really liked the idea of a panning shot when the detectives run across the bridge because it gave a sense of the speed of the chase and the following of the characters emphasises the movement. This panning affect is also used in the film Skyfall during the bike chase. It is effective because it blurs out the background while maintaining focus on the character and adding to the effect of speed.

Camera ShotsClose up ShotExtreme Close up Shot

Our extreme close up of the gun with me holding it was inspired by the film Taken. The still image from the film starring Liam Neeson creates a sense of power and shows the weapon as being a threat, in our thriller we aimed to create similar feelings and the fact the gun is in the foreground shows it has great significance.

The idea of including the close up of the hand holding the notepad was inspired by this shot in the film drama Gran Torino. The shot signifies the importance of the object and creates questions for the audience about what the object is or what it was for. The notepad is a MacGuffin in our film and therefore we felt it was very important to have a shot focussing on it.

Camera Shots As well as the camera angles we included some shots because we had seen similar set ups and angles in films before and thought they would look good in our thriller. The inspiration we received from watching professional thriller movies influenced some of the shots we included in our opening sequence. The main films that gave me ideas were: Now You See Me, Skyfall, Taken 1&2 and The Woman in Black.

When at the warehouse location I spotted a large piece of metal fencing. I thought this would look really good as a foreground object or a filter almost because it framed the shot nicely and added the connotations of being trapped or restricted. It is similar to one shot used in the thriller Now You See Me in which two of the main characters find themselves in a cell made of metal bars. The metal grids add an extra layer of mystery to the shot and I think that the use of it in our media product was highly successful.

Prison Cell Now You See MeWarehouse Entrance - SilencerCamera ShotsHiding in Kitchen Jurassic ParkHiding in Warehouse - Silencer

For the closing moments of the chase scene we chose to have a hide a seek style hunt between the running teenager and the two detectives. When looking at the shot set up I noticed it was similar to the emotions created by the shot in Jurassic Park where the young children hide from the velociraptors behind the kitchen units. I also think these shots are similar because the vulnerable characters facial expressions show how they feel and display to the audience the dangerous situation they are in. Both shots also build suspense because the vulnerable characters cant see the chasers but the audience can. This dramatic irony makes the scene more tense.

Camera ShotsAston Martin SkyfallJaguar - Silencer Being a huge fan of the James Bond films I wanted to replicate some shots from the films into my own. One thing I think works really well in the 007 films is the use of cars to show the change in location or a journey. This is why we used the Jaguar in our film, to show the detectives travelling to the crime scene. However, I think the car scene also creates some ambiguity because not everyone will assume it is the detectives in the car. We also filmed a shot of the car going through a puddle, I think the splash it made shows the speed of the car. We couldnt just drive very fast because it would have been unsafe, therefore we created some techniques to reduce the risk (see risk assessment at INSERT HYPERLINK)

Lighting In our thriller film we used a lot of natural lighting. We did this to accompany the natural woodland locations and to create the idea of showing the characters in a true (non-artificial) light. This contrasts with the fact the main detective is hiding his dark story and isnt who he appears to be. I thought some shots needed darker lighting than others. For example the shot of me and Charlie (acting as the two detectives)walking into the warehouse.

The darkened shot makes the detectives seem more mysterious and could also imply a dark side to the characters. I love every aspect of this shot and I think the light is something that completes it. The silhouetted figure shot is often used in thriller films to show a killer or a bad guy, therefore the audience may suspect something isnt right because they wouldnt expect to see the detectives shown as bad people.

We used a lot of natural light in the forest because it would have been difficult to create a prominent light source using electrical lighting because of the sun being stronger and the lack of an electrical supply. Although, using natural light did have many advantages; it shows the time of day, it cast natural shadows and meant less continuity errors in terms of having equipment in shot or a shadow that doesnt match the others.