How our media product uses, develops or challenges

forms and conventions of real media products

Forest setting

We used a forest setting of riding a bicycle from the opening sequence of the film Donnie Darko

We used the forest as it conforms to the enigma code of an isolated setting to create suspense amongst the audience and the wide open space alone adds to the feeling as in the forest is not empty space leading to fear of what lies in the forest.

As you can see the film Donnie Darko, the main character, or the only character visible for the opening sequence, is alone on the road in the forest completely alone. This connotes the idea of suspense as he is more vulnerable to danger alone

We used this feeling alongside a murder to reinforce the feeling of fear and suspense so the audience expects something to happen later on

Close ups

We used close ups of characters as also used in the movie Insidious

The convention of using a close up of a characters face is typically used to connote their emotions easier to the audience which would have more of an impact on how they feel viewing our product

We used the close up of a character’s death as it connotes an uneasiness to the audience as they feel close and maybe even a part of the murder.

Credits in opening scene

Using film credits for cast and crew in the opening sequence as used in the film Sherlock Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)

This convention aids to give the audience a bit more of a feel as to the pace and sophistication of the media product and those involved, as an example the Sherlock Holmes opening credits are presented quite formally and present the characters as educated and intellectual

Our group used this convention with a simple plain font to contrast the very detailed and colourful setting of a forest to connote to the audience that our product can connote suspense as the audience will be uncertain what the product is representing

Not showing killers face

We used the convention of not showing the killers face as used in the movie Jack the Ripper (1959)

The convention of not showing the killer’s face to the audience is to signify mystery as nobody knows, the audience or the protagonist, the identity of the killer

We used this as it connote the suspense of the murder mystery to the audience as nobody knows the killer it could be anyone the protagonist may know or see which builds suspense as they could be anyone and anywhere

Blood or lack of

Blood is a very typical convention of thriller or any murder in movies in general

Blood has always been a typical convention of murders in movies to build up the suspense by showing them blood which will makes the audience feel uneasy and signifies a violent death in movies

We challenged this by using a murder in our movie by choking as opposed to anything involving blood. We did this to make the murder feel more personal as it is done with their bare hands as opposed to standard kitchenry.

Daylight outside

The normal for murders or thriller conventions is typically at night or in a dark setting in general, we challenged this convention

As shown in the film Sherlock Holmes and the hound of the Baskervilles (1939), a male character is shown in a dark setting at night, this is typically used to connote the feeling of suspense as not much can be seen and surprises or scares are more easily conveyed to the audience as part of a murder also so that the murderer or antagonist can hide easier and get away with the crime.

In our film, we shot in daylight challenging the convention of darkly lit murders. We did this because as the murder is still set in an isolated setting, filming in broad daylight reinforces the seclusion to the audience and of the protagonist.