Thriller Evaluation, Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Title Sequence:

I was directly influenced by 50s and 60s thriller title sequences in my film because they are visually very interesting and generate emotional response in the way that they are presented. I did some research and discovered the key characteristics are:

• Bold white lettering 
• Usually full capitalized
• Unique fonts
• Graphics artistically blended into live action

Two of the main inspirations for my title sequence and how they influenced it are described below:

Vertigo:

One of the most recognized title sequences is that from the film Vertigo (1958)

Vertigo's titles used bold lettering and highly symbolic images to interpolate the viewer and make them question what it was supposed to represent. It cuts from an extreme closeup of an eye to what I interpret as an eyeline match to spinning shapes which give the impression of falling - which foreshadows several themes running throughout the film. It also shares many similarities to the highly symbolic dream sequence later on in the film which is an interesting aspect considering 'Delusion' mostly consists of a dream and contains many similar aspects.

In my film, the main character is mysteriously killed in a dream in which blood suddenly appears on his hand followed by a montage which symbolizes the lead up to his death. 

Shot of blood from 'Delusion'

As a result of this and prior inspiration from vertigo, I decided that a transition which formed the shapes of blood splattering would serve as not only be good aesthetically but it would also carry symbolic meaning from the narrative.

Psycho:

Psycho's title sequence consists of a black background, bold white fonts and a series of lines which serve as transitions in between the titles. I decided that this would be a great thing to use as it not only is a good way to transition from live action to graphical images but also a good way to subtly include an intertextual reference to another thriller film. 

Screen of title sequence in Psycho

As a result of this, I decided I would add a series of horizontal lines which develop over a few seconds along with the film titles in sync with the events in the live action footage. 

Lighting:

'Delusion' relies heavily upon chiaroscuro lighting similarly to Film Noir films of the 40s and 50s as it gives it a very chilling effect. The lighting on the car park was from street lamps and lights on the parking ramp but they were spaced out enough to give the effect of single source and  to provide a high amount of contrast whilst still making it easy to distinguish between objects. Similarly for the drama room there was lighting in one spot of the room which casted expressionist shadows upon our characters.

Mise en scene:

The majority of our film is set on the top floor of a car park and inside a drama room which both conforms and challenges thriller conventions. The floor was wet and shiny which reflected light and gave it a very noir ambience and it was set in a very urban environment which gives it similar aesthetics to films such as 'Essex Boys', 'Snatch' etc.

Empty urban spaces are commonly used in particularly British crime thrillers and gives off the idea that it is happening in plain sight and gives the audience a feeling that it could be happening to anyone anywhere. The key difference in our film is that the sequence is put together in such a way that it appears to be very eerie since the place is fully operational with all the nights turned on but with nobody around - giving it an almost unrealistic quality. Using the idea that 'help is nearby but unaware' is a key feature in thriller films as it gives a sense of false hope that there could be somebody nearby who could save them. An example of this is in 'Scream' when Casey Becker is escaping and subsequently being killed in her garden - the moment her parents arrive home.

The drama room was an interesting space to film as it's a large space but contains very few objects - which similarly, along with the car park creates a very strange sense of space in the film since the characters are very small compared to settings they are in.

Storyline, editing and themes:

Symbolic meaning and foreshadowing is used to convey meaning within the narrative. At the end of our sequence the male character discovers that the girl has been killed following a dream in which he sees himself being killed. I decided to use a very Eisenstein inspired montage to demonstrate his death (in the dream) without actually showing it and the short montage consists of around 5 shots which create a transition between his blood covered hand and him laying dead on the floor. I repeated the sound of car revving over the montage which implies that he got ran over and used reverb and delay in the audio settings in sync with the cuts to give it a very stylistic quality.

Once again, this dream sequence draws inspiration from Vertigo in which following Madeleine death, Scottie places himself in her position and is shown falling off a roof and then into a grave. Prior to being killed, I use an edit in which the opening of a car boot cuts from the inside of the boot to the outside - of which I synchronise perfectly to make it appear as though the camera hasn't moved - after which he sees himself inside the boot of his own car. I feel as though when sequences are set inside a dream certain rules from the real world don't apply so I used aspects of surreal nature which are detailed above to demonstrate to the audience that something is different.

Some inspiration for the themes was taken from German Expressionism, which became popular in berlin post WW1 and detailed many of the horrors the country was facing. The influence films such as 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' is important as Delusion brushes on aspects expressionism explored such as insanity, horror and death.