storyboard

media thriller opening storyboard from Jayden2431

Treatment

movie title: The last Move

Outline
The protagonist is walking towards a entrance towards an estate with suspenseful music and an over the shoulder shot and small shot to create suspense. there is then a long shot of the protagonist going into the estate further, (the face hasn't yet been revealed much yet). while walking through the estate further there is then a close up of the protagonists face as he is walking up to a door with a serious face. As he gets to the door there is then a close up on the protagonist taking a bag from another person , however the other characters face isn't shown as there body is behind a wall. The protagonist then takes the bag and walks away as the music starts to become more upbeat, he then turns a corner where  he is faced by a group of youths who start to chase him, at this point the upbeat music then reaches its climax. The shots then become more erratic as the protagonist is running through the estate being chased with on beat editing making the scenes more pleasing to the eye. The music then becomes that similar to a horror as a jump scare is anticipated. The protagonist then starts to slow down in the corner of the estate where he then hides with his back against the wall as a close up shot shows his face as behind the wall can also be seen as one of the youth who are looking for him can also be seen doing so. The shot afterwards then shows the protagonist looking out of the hiding place into the surrounding area as another shot shows a panning of the area with no one there. As the protagonist comes out there is a short close up of his face, the jump scare then occurs with the protagonist being attacked as the camera turns shaky and is blurred as the screen fades black and the music dies down with "the last move" then being displayed across the black screen before being dissolved into black.

Target Audience:
male/female
Age:
15-30
Genre:
crime/psychological thriller
Duration:
2-3 minutes

Location and Requirements:
For my location i have considered central Hill estate in Norwood/ gypsy hill/Crystal palace as i will also give myself a budget of £20-40 for props and equipment (2-4 masks, microphone ect...)

Props, Equipment And Characters

Props, equipment and characters from Jayden2431
props: machete or other sort of threatening weapon (pole maybe)

Target Audience Profile

Target audience profile from Jayden2431

customer profile questionnaire

customer profile questionnaire

female/male: aged 15-20

what is it about thrillers that you like?
I like thrillers due to their versatility and flexible nature that they can have during the composition. The fact that a thriller could have a comedy sub-genere next to one which has a horror such-genre and still give me the feelings that i love the most such as suspense, mystery and enigma is what i find entertaining the most.

what is your favourite thriller sub-genre?
My favourite thriller sub-genre is a psychological sub-genre since most of the conflict within the film is mental and the protagonists sanity is literally threateed as well as this the psych of the characters are down to the audiences to decipher making them come up with their own reasons for the reason why a character acted in such a way.  

whats your favourite thriller film and why?
My favourite film is called "circle"where people awake in an arena (alien created) standing up and if they move they die, they soon realise that the beeping count down kills someone every one minute but they can speed it up by voting with their hands who dies and who survives while people lie and try to stay alive as well as determine who deserves to die by questioning each other (people such as children, pregnant women and and parents last longer and those who are found out to be homosexual, racist, have felines as well as just being old tend to die faster).

what don't you like about thrillers?
In thrillers i don't like the fact that directors feel obligated to create a large amount of jump scares as if it were a horror, thrillers don't necessarily have to be scary and the fact that most thrillers have this as well as large amounts of action scenes is a large misconception that i dint really like although it can sometimes be appealing to the eye.

Lighting Analysis

lighting in films, if used correctly can add to themes, storyline or even help in character development. Lighting can also help foreshadow in whats happening next, conceal secrets as well as to just help build some sort of feeling in the audience like suspense.

Lights out- This uses lighting very effectively by putting extra lights in the forefront to take the focus off the protagonist and make the audience recognise the dark figure in the front. The scene could be considered as low key lighting and because of this it makes the audience assume something dangerous is about to happen. The room being empty and with one of the figures being completely blacked out and in the shadows adds to the enigma effect of the scene.



12 years a slave- The use of lighting in this scene may seem vey basic but through utilising the lighting for a focal point and to cast shade on an empty space, it creates a focal point for the scene and makes the audience focus on the chained man even more then he would if the whole room was lit this helps us focus on the protagonist more so his emotions, feelings as well as physical state can be fully analysed by the audience.

Analysis of Music

 Se7en: The intro music for Se7en consists of a metallic scratchy sound as well as a sound that is similar to that of  a shaver. The irregular beat pattern, oddly used sounds and constant sound of what appears to be a heart beat was used to create discomfort within the  audience as well as an irritating combination of sounds which make a paralysed beat which gets under the skin of the audience letting them know that they're watching a thriller before they've seen anything else which I think was achieved perfectly.





   Dexter: The title sequence of dexter is different from Se7en due to the use of the upbeat banjo rather then a sinister approach, the use of the banjo gives of a upbeat vibe however it is juxtaposed with the overlapping sound of a bell as well as other awkward  and eerie non diegetic sounds, this makes the normal banjo sound irregular, this combination helps build some sort of suspense as if something isn't quite right helping build a mystery of some sort separate from the actual show.

Typography Analysis

Typography is the text used in a film or tv program and is based around the font and style of text as well as what it does e.g. fades or being  distorted.

Se7en: seven's typography is very efficient as it straight away lets you know that its going to be a thriller by the use of the gritty, distorted font that is made more striking due to the quick bright appearances on the screen as well as it being enlarged at the same time. This with the combination of the rough sketchy font and quick and unexpected combinations on the screen make the audience have some sort of uneasy and awkward feeling when seeing it.

Psycho: Another great example of where there is good typography is in psycho, the plain black and white help add to the suspense of the film as its bold and is easily identifiable, as well as this the chopped and cracked letters let the audience know that it isn't the usual film and that there is something else unnerving about it.

Memento: The typography in Memento is very basic is it simply fades in and out while overlaying the footage of someone waiting for their photo to develop, the calmness of the vibrant blue text lets the audience know that the developing photo may be an important part of the film and helps build suspense as well as anticipation within the audience.

Opening plan from Jayden2431

Mood board from Jayden2431

opening ideas

Ideas:

1. set in a south London estate, the protagonist is handed a bag from the front of a flat and told "they will come for you" with the person giving the bag kept in the darkness to add to the enigma, the protagonist will then leave the the front door and proceed to walk with the bag through the dark estate, but he is then chased throughout the estate by a group of masked youths (masked to add to mystery) the scene will then end with a phone call where someone is letting the protagonist know he "wont make it"
2. set, in a forest, a group of friends just want to have more fun coming home from a party, however they soon find that hey are not alone, one by one they start to go missing but at the same time trying to find out who or what is after them and why as well as trying to escape.
3. The protagonist wakes up in the middle of the car park, however cant remember what happened to him the night before or how to get home, he then receives a phone call saying" you have 48 hours to get back all of it", the rest of the scene is about the protagonist trying to find out where he is, what happened the night before, who the man is that called him and what he took.

Opening Scene Analysis

Dredd (2012) 

The opening to Dredd starts with heavy base non-diegetic sound and a screen is black, however the screen then fades into a long shot of the city in the foreground and is made clear to the audience that outside the city is abandoned due to the plain died land that lays before the city, as well as this the sun is also shining directly at the camera to show to the audience the intensity of the heat from the sun. At this point there is still the heavy base non- diegetic sound but it becomes more quiet as the voice of the narrator (Karl Urban) explains to the audience the questions they have created from just watching the first couple of seconds of the scene and the rest of the plot of the film.

There is then a moving Birds eye shot which slowly moves from the barren desert to the "mega city". It is then made clear due to the audience that the setting of the film is one of a dystopia due to the appearance of the city and the help of the narrator which describes the city as "cursed". The moving birds eye view continues to capture the landscape of the "wasteland" that is America.

The scene then cuts to another shot of the city and acts as an establishing shot for the audience it then makes it extra clear that the film is also a science fiction since within the shot a drone is flying past and behind it there are several housing blocks known as "mega blocks" which one holds the equivalent amount of people as one city.

Next, there is a transition to Dredd wrapping up his hand which makes the audience anticipate something and the director uses this to create suspense and keep the audience engaged in whats going on. To further grip the audience there is the use of a news report which incorporates long shots and a low angle shot of rioters, the director uses this to add to the realism of the film. There is then a transition to the hall of justice building which then pans up to show how big it is as well as the logo at the top of it. It then cuts and continues to show Dredd putting on his bullet proof vest to a close up shot showing the side of his gun where it shows his I.D. , to another close up of him putting on his helmet, however his face isn't shown and the director uses this to create an enigma and keep the audience interested in watching in the hope that his face will eventually be revealed this is then followed by a medium shot of Dredd in his full outfit.

The Non-diegetic music then stops being base underneath the narrator to loud fast paced upbeat music and the 3D effect of the title "DREDD" on the screen. This is then followed with a fast cut transition of the camera moving inside a tunel towards the right side of the screen until the scene is then concluded with Dredd speeding into the distance on a bike.

Thriller Subgenres

Thriller Subgenres:

• Action - Give its defining elements a back seat, and focus on the action and you have an action thriller, is more commonly found in films then novels due to the visual appeal of explosions and violence.
• Crime - Usually from the criminals point of view and majority of the appeal coming from the cunning of the criminal eluding the police as well as the physical action, and the police gathering evidence trying to find the criminals.
• mystery - Usually much more fast paced then a regular mystery with the protagonist on the run for something or from something.
• spy - This subgenere focuses on the high adventure of field agents and is usually set on the back drop of some war or to prevent one from occurring. 
• political - In this subgenere political relations or the whole government is at stake
• psychological - Most of the conflict is mental rather then physical and the protagonist has become in a dangerous situation which literally threatens their sanity.
• conspiracy - The protagonist must over come some sort of power by himself, which threat he can only see. 
• (many more subgenera)

Examples:


Now you see me 2- crime, mystery, action

Jason Bourne - action, spy

The conjuring - horror, supernatural

The nice guys - crime, mystery, conspiracy, comedy





Money Monster - crime, political

The Barthes Code

The Hermeneutic code:
This is the part(s) of the story that is unanswered (like enigmas) they don't have to be at the beginning of the story, however thrillers tend to use them towards the end so they are quickly revealed. Some times there will be a snare which is information that can sent the audience down the wrong path as well as equivocation which mixes the truth with the snare.

example:

- When corrupt judge lex enters the mega block (housing blocks) and murders a civilian ready to testify to the crimes that he had witnessed prior to his entrance, as well as the state of the city, why are there so many slums?, what happened to normal police? these elements come under the hermeneutic code as it creates mystery and confuses the audience for a period of the film.


- A snare was used within sherlock Holmes as most of the film made you think that Lord black wood had some sort of magical powers when in actuality it was just science (revealed to audience at the end by sherlock)





- Although it wasn't clear until the end, a snare was used wihin fight club as Brad Pit's character was only in Edward Norton's head as a sort of alterego however was presented as two different characters for the majority of the film.







The Proairetic code :
Actions suggesting further reaction, also known as the action code, e.g. an argument waiting for the resolution/ answer. the aim of this is to create suspense as the audience expects a reaction.

example:



-As Harry goes to get water for Dumbledore in harry otter and the half blood prince it creates tension as the audience waits in silence for the reaction.

Thriller Conventions

Many thrillers today that are successful are due to subtle elements that go unnoticed to most people however when executed properly it leave the audience constantly on the edge of their seats and in constant suspense.


low key lighting:
Low key lighting is important to the thriller genre as it creates mystery and makes the audience wait in anticipation as the possibilities of the black void behind what the camera is focusing on is endless which grips the audience making them watch as the plot revealed.

enigma/mystery:
Enigma/Mystery is a key element as it makes the audience create their own questions for things that haven't been answered yet in the story as well create their own theories about what is actually
happening.



Suspense:
Suspense is an element that is mainly focused on in thrillers and is used to grip the audience and add to the mystery factor, keeps them attentive as well as leave the audience wondering what will happen next .





Slow/realistic build up:
The build up in a film is important as if the plot is released slowly it adds to the tension of the film making the audience crave more.




isolated setting:
An area that is isolate increases the mystery factor part of the film as it makes the audience wonder what they would do if it were them in an desolate area far from anyone else as they create their own scenarios in their head.

Action:
Action isn't something that is compulsory for a thriller however it can be used to make scenes more exciting and used to create a sudden event that can catch the attention of the audience even more.

welcome

Hi, my name is Jayden and this is my AS media blog. On this blog i will be going through what makes a good thriller opening and how to create one. It will consist of a logo, title, music and will last two to five minutes long and i will take you through each step of my planning to the finished piece.