Thriller Evaluation, Question 5: How did you attract or address your audience?

Cliffhangers:

The sequence is very open ended and basically finishes on a cliffhanger and leaves alot to be explained. For this reason a lot of potentially important details are left out and both the characters featured in the narrative could either be heroes or villains. 

The audience are thrown into a world of completely unexplained chaos and despair which would interpolate the audience as they will be naturally interested in watching the rest to watch the narrative unfold and to understand more about the diegesis in which the film is set in. 

A major cliffhanger also occurs within the sequence and gives the audience a false sense of dread as it would appear the main character Charlie is dead - when it actually occured within a dream. This would be a huge shock and challenges film conventions since it is fairly rare for the main character to supposedly die so early on.

Inter-textual references:

The title sequence is almost directly influenced by that of the hitchcock film Vertigo (1960). I decided that the lines featured running across the screen in vertigo would be interesting as they are extremely recognizable to thriller audiences and would immediately engage with the audiences and throw in some suggestions as to what the narrative would be inspired by and include. 

Furthermore, the title sequence was designed and serves as an intertextual reference to 40s and 50s cinema in itself due to the graphics that are used and the way it's delivered to create a sense of fear and distort the images filmed in live-action.

Narrative: 

The narrative of Delusion is interesting as it isn't entirely linear and contains techniques such as montages and is highly subjective - being from the main character Charlie's dream. This film is more challenging to audiences than what would be seen in films that were directed towards a mainstream audience but the somewhat dis-interpolating techniques require the audience to engage, think about and attempt to unpick the mystery of what is occurring on the screen. 

Stills from the montage

Stills from the montage

Stills from the montage

Provided this was shown in a venue such as picturehouse cinemas it would definitely be likely to engage our target audience as it requires some more participation from audiences. 

Camera:

The camera is highly subjective and takes place from the perspective of Charlie. This is a commonly used way to address audiences as it helps build a relationship to the character as it directly (perhaps uncomfortably) places them inside his position. 

The camera is used to create a sense of entrapment and fear throughout several points in the sequence:

• A Tarantino style trunk shot is used which creates a sense of entrapment as it is a commonly used location for thriller villians to place their victims. Small spaces such as this are also naturally claustrophobic as being inside of a boot would be difficult to get out of and extremely uncomfortable. 
• The character Eve suddenly appears behind Charlie - which was created by using a low angle shot which obscures the ground-level of the mise en scene. This is entrapping as he walks backwards into her (who at this point could be a killer) and dramatic irony is used as there is a brief moment where he doesn't notice her standing there.

Thriller Evaluation, Question 4: Who would be the audience for your media product:

Audience:

Age:

The actors performing in our film are 17 which means that our film would mostly appeal to those within the 17-24 age group. It was also composed by 16/17 year olds which means a younger audience would be more likely to watch and engage with a film that has been produced by their age and the characters will most likely have traits they can relate to and the characters are generally wearing classic film noir attire with a trendier, more modern touch which gives this film an appeal particularly to the 17-20 age group.

Ethnicity:

Since our characters do not communicate through verbal means in the narrative it means that there are no language barriers that would make it difficult for an audience to understand. This film would appeal to western audiences in particular as the setting of a multi-story car park is an extremely recognizable feature of urban areas in cities and there would be no confusion as to where it was taking place.

Gender:

Delusion would appeal to both males and females and the main point of the film was to make every character appear weak. The dream sequence is from the subjective of the male character Charlie but the inconsistencies within his dream make him appear to be a weak. 

I doubt anybody would avoid the film due to gender roles as there is nothing that suggests the gender is particularly important to the narrative and with the lack of narration and dialogue it isn't clear who is the most important. 

Audiences Interests:

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari: 

This is an old film but it has a cult following and has many similarities to Delusion: It takes place inside the dreams of somebody who supposedly killed his best friend and has blocked out the incident. Due to his insane, irrational thoughts the audience are placed in a world of chaos where everything has a sense of distortion and is displayed within highly symbolic images. To summarise, fans of highly subjective film making would enjoy this.

Essex boys:

The films are somewhat different but both narratives are tied up in a world of chaos, murder and bleakness. Fans of the grittier nature of bullet boy may take a liking to the urban british environment featured in Delusion.

Thriller Evaluation, Question 3: What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Why it wouldn't be shown to mainstream audiences:

'Delusion' is far too experimental to be considered to be shown to mainstream audiences - instead I suggest it would be more suited to more niche audiences at arthouse and independent venues such as 'Picturehouse' cinemas. To elaborate on this I will discuss the main appeal of mainstream films and why my film wouldn't apply to this:

• High budget, glossy films: Delusion was made with an extremely low budget and doesn't offer much in the way of visual effects
• Simple linear narratives: the narrative begins inside a dream at the start of the sequence and there is no character introduction as such. The outcome of the film also leaves alot to be interpreted.  
• Easy to understand characters: Exactly as the name 'Delusion' implies - the characters in this plot are complicated and it is a very subjective narrative from the dream of the potentially psychopathic character Charlie.

To summarize - mainstream cinemas wouldn't have much interest in this film as the current state of mainstream/hollywood cinema means that a lower budget film probably wouldn't have much of a chance at success without a big enough drawn-in audience from marketing campaigns.

Social Media/Internet distribution

In researching how independent films have been successfully marketed and distributed in the past I found a great interest in The Blair Witch Project which is one of the most successful independent films of all time and was made for a budget of only $22500 but went on to make $2.48m - which proves that it is entirely possible. It was backed by clever marketing and was primarily promoted via the internet. 

It would be of high importance to market the film via social media (facebook, twitter etc.) as it would give the film a chance to reach a wider audience. 

Cinema City/Picturehouse Cinemas:

Darker, more experimental and lower budget films would most likely be considered to be showcased to a more niche audience and given a chance at a venue such as Picturehouse cinemas. Being an independent venue it would be easier to negotiate perhaps a public test screening to see how members of the public would respond.


Furthermore, Cinemacity has a program called Cinemaplus which runs courses particularly for young people in the community - therefore it would likely be willing to offer a chance at screening their films.

Competitions:

"Cinemagic is an award winning festival that embraces the magic of film, television and digital technologies to educate, motivate and inspire young people through film screenings, industry workshops, practical masterclasses, filmmaking projects and outreach activities."

- Quote from Cinemagics website

Upon researching opportunities in film, I discovered a film festival company that offers education for young people and holds competitions for people aged 12-25 years old. It hosts a yearly competition in belfast in which films are submitted and shown at the festival. This would be a great opportunity to get some exposure and perhaps some fans for the film as it is one of the biggest film festivals in the UK.

Thriller Evaluation, Question 2: How does your media represent particular social groups?

Representation of Class:

The characters in our sequence are represented as being upper/upper middle class:


Both the characters are presented as being fairly wealthy and affluent which creates a sense of shock at the events portrayed on the screen. It is a common feature of thriller films to give a sense of disillusionment and chaos occurring within affluent society to give an idea that it could happen to anyone - which evokes fear and confusion within the audience as it "hits closer to home"


The car is very important as it isn't directly associated with wealth or class (such as what a Rolls Royce or Mercades Benz would be) but it is still fairly expensive for a character in his late teens/early 20s to be driving.


The clothes they are wearing are typical of film noir and were used in our narrative to connote a sense of wealth and professionalism. Our main male character is presented as wearing a formal hat, a white shirt and most importantly a grey wool jumper with no tie: which suggests this is casual wear. Upper classes would typically wear expensive clothes more casually as it is economically viable to do so and connotes a sense of wealth.

Gender:

There isn't a clear sense of gender roles in our film and the narrative is generally set out in a way where it isn't quite sure who is the villain in our narrative. However, our female character Eve is only seen alive inside Charlie's dream where she is perhaps presented in a different state to usual and doesn't talk - which gives us an unreliable stance on who she really is.

Due to the complicated nature of our narrative and the fact it's set in modern times we decided that traditional gender roles would be an unnecessary and confusing part of the sequence so gender isn't a huge issue in the narrative.

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.



Thriller Film: Final Cut

Psycho: Case Study

Psycho (1960)

Introduction:

Psycho is an american psychological thriller film starring Anthony Perkins and Janet Leigh. It depicts the story of Marion Crane who is on the run for stealing $40000 in order to marry her boyfriend (Sam Loomis) and the psychopath Norman Bates who is out to get her.

Film Noir:

This film has a very "film noir" aesthetic to it which can be attributed to the chiaroscuro lighting which fills many of the sequences. Early horror films were also heavily influenced by early expressionist films in both their themes: nightmares, death, fear etc. and their styling which usually includes surreal set designs and lighting.

Archetype:

Early in the film, Marion Crane is established as the Femme Fatale when she steals some money that was supposed to be delivered to the bank. This is one of the traditional archetypes of narrative cinema and it usually suggests that something bad will inevitably happen to this character unless they are able to change their ways. We are able to establish some sympathy for her as she is only doing this to gain the affection of her lover Sam Loomis, with whom she is having an affair.

This was concept was adapted into later horror films by using the idea of the "final girl" - which is the character that is typically immune from the killers attacks, whereas the characters considered sinful would be killed off.

A similar character, Eve, in 'Once Upon A Time in America' is among one of the first characters to be killed in the film

Shower Scene:

The shower scene is one of the most notable moments in the film. 

There are many ways in which it creates a sense of fear for the audience:

• The character encloses themselves in a small space which gives a sense of claustrophobia and lack of hope
• Dramatic irony is used: we can see the killer's silhouette through the shower curtain
• The attack happens in a place that is considered private (making her somewhat vunerable to attack) and associated with cleanliness, which makes it much more disturbing to the audience