Thriller Audience Research- Questionnaire

In order to get a more accurate and precise responses about the film genre I wanted to ask a more direct audience about their thoughts and opinions of film. I have included questions that appeal to both the mass and niche audience as this will able me to adapt the results into audience research. 

The questionnaire was completed by 10 participants and I aimed to distribute them evenly. 

The following is the reasoning behind why i have chosen to ask these questions and why they are important.

1) How old are you? I asked this question because it will highlight to me which age group will enjoy watching thriller films, and see whether there is a trend in the responses due to the different age categories. It will also underline that the questionnaire was distributed equally.

2) Are you female/male? I asked this question as it will able to see if there is a difference between the responses from a male viewpoint or female. This will allow me to interpret whether males and females look for a different factors in thriller films.

3) How often do you watch thriller films? This was an important questions as it will narrow down the niche audience from the mass market. For example, a person who watches a thriller daily/weekly are a niche thriller audience compared to those who watch it monthly/yearly. This question will also connote the popularity of thriller films among the participants therefore being either a successful genre to produce or not so successful.

4) What is your favourite sub-genre? I asked this question to see what the most popular sub-genre was that they enjoyed as this would highlight to be the most successful. It will also allow me to see whether crime thrillers was an appropriate choice for my film so that the audience will enjoy it.

5) What is your favourite thriller film? I asked this question as it will give me an insight into what films the participants have enjoyed most. This will allow me to research further into these films and implement the elements into my own film opening.

6) What would you classify as your top 3 genre's? This will highlight to me the most popular genre's that the participants enjoy. It will also show me how successful thriller films are depending on the popularity of the choices that are stated.

7) What attracts you most when watching a thriller film? These are things that the participants can circle so I can clearly be able to see what they enjoy. This will able me to implement these factors into my film opening as the audience prefer these factors.

8) Have you heard of the institution 'Summit Entertainment'? This question will tell me whether the company are well known to the target audience or not and whether they are familiar with the company.

9)What codes and conventions would you expect to see in a thriller film? This question is vital as it will inform me of what the target audience would expect to see for a 'thriller' film and it it vital that I include all of these suggestions in my film opening so the audience will be able to pick these out instantly.

These questionnaire results will be very  helpful for me as it will clearly outline to me what the audience will expect to see in the film opening. This will able me to implement these factors into my film opening effectively.

The Entitlement Film Analysis

The Entitlement is the most recent crime thriller film that I have analysed. The film includes the plot of kidnapping similar to the film I am doing.

This is the first shot that appears when watching the film and shows the audience that the film that they are watching is an independent and own developed movie of high quality. The black background connotes that they base films of dark genres including thriller and horror whereas the logo of block building may represent that they set these films is famous cities including new York where there are a lot of sky scraper buildings.

The establishing shot immediately shows the audience that the film is set in the very reputable city of New York a famous city all over the world. This underlines that the audience will already know context about this notorious location. Furthermore the high angle shot of the city connotes to the audience that residents that live in New York are victims and will be targeted throughout the film which underlines the story line of the film. The dim lighting in this shot doesn’t allow the audience to see the in depth detail of this shot which symbolises

that the city is set for destruction or bad events are about to take place in this city.

This wide shot establishes a building from the inside. The lighting in the background is very dim which highlights the time zone that it is about to become the evening. The audience cannot see the people who are walking into the building as they are black and look like shadows which is key convention of thriller films which causes mystery and unease as they cannot see who these character are.

This is a high angle wide shot out of the ceiling which shows a bright ambient lighting which signifies that in the light it is good and darker lighting is used to symbolise bad events. The title of the film also appears in this shot which is difficult for the audience to see due to the similar colours. This represents that the title is not significant and is not the main focus in this shot as the audience will be drawn into the background of the sky which connotes it significance to the film.

This shot is an over the shoulder shot as we see two characters in the clip. The main focus is on the character in the front of the shot as the character in the background is focused out. The character in the front of the shot is wearing both a grey top and grey cap which symbolises the dull person that the character is which connotes to the audience that he is uninteresting. Furthermore, in the background the audience can vaguely make out a doctors coat which highlights that he is in fact a doctor. High contrast lighting is also apparent in this shot. The light is on one half of  the dominant character’s face whereas the other half is dark highlighting that this character has a split personality.

This low angle shot makes this character seem superior and with the power. It also implies the importance that this character has. The clothing of the character is very formal as he is wearing a suit which connotes to the audience that he is professional businessman and is involved with the character in the previous shots. The lighting from the foreground symbolises that this character is a good person in this film and the facial expression that the character has is also happy which connotes to the audience the bright and professional character they are.

This wide shot shows the character sitting alone in the library as there are books on the right hand side of the shot. We can also see down the left side that all of the tables and chair are also empty which connotes to the audience that the character does not have any friends and is a bit of a loner. The lighting is very low key although the audience are able to see that he is studying due to the props on the table including books and paperwork. This highlights that he could be a student or enjoys researching.

The shot then zooms into the paperwork that the character is looking at. The close up on the page shows the audience the details about the character including his criminal history and attempted suicide. This density of information being revealed in this shot highlights that the character is in fact not a good person but has a past of terrible behaviour. The document looks formal due to its structured layout which connotes that this is a formal piece of information about the character.

 This close up shot shows the images of two characters. The black and white could represent that these images are old and dated highlighting that the male image is the character in the previous shot. This leave mystery and audience are unaware of female character in this shot building tension amongst the audience. The slight  of a newspaper in the right hand top corner indicates that these images are associated with the newspaper which signifies that these character have been involved in the press again building tension.

Taken Film Analysis

Taken is a popular crime thriller that also includes the plot of kidnapping.

This is the first image we see as the films begins. The shot is of the production company of the film and is the infamous 20^th century fox. This particular studio is known for its successful films so viewers will expect to see  a well produced film. The angle that we see the logo from is a low angle which connotes that 20^th century fox is a superior  film studios and are the very best and the use of dim lighting also connotes that there is still mystery involved in their films. The use of spotlights highlights to the audience that this is a conventional Hollywood film and Hollywood films are often associated with Syd Field’s 3 act plot structure.

 This is a big close up of a dominant party hat which says happy birthday which highlights that it is somebodies birthday, more specifically a child. The bright colours from the balloon and the hat connotes that this is a happy and enthusiastic time for the individual as birthdays are meant to be enjoyable occasions. The lighting is dim but this is not shown clearly as the frame stock is slightly fuzzy which underlines that this is a video which has been pre-recorded and from a previous time, for example a family film. This connotes that a person is reminiscing back to a time which is a happy time for them.

The quick cut then introduces more characters in this deep shot which shows to characters and an object. The character resembles and mother and daughter due to how the characters are positioned which connotes that there is a strong family link in the film. Furthermore the dominant figure in this show is also the horse which was gift opened up by the young girl connoting her innocence and showing the viewers her interests. This highlights that horses mat reoccur in the film and symbolise innocence and childhood. The lighting in this shot is high key lighting, however the grainy stock connotes that this is a home video of some sort. The text on this screen is positioned so that the focus still remains on the character.

 The shot then quickly cuts to this with a man sleeping which signifies that the grainy affect film clip was in fact him dreaming. This causes tension as the audience do not know how the girl or women is related to the man as he was not seen in the previous clip. The low key lighting doesn’t allow the audience to see much of the characters surroundings which leave the audience with unease and the sense of awareness. Low key lighting and shadows (as seen reflecting on the wall) are conventions of crime thriller films.

 The film continues and see’s him waking up. This long wide shot establishes the setting the character is in. the take away boxes on the table underline to the audience that he is living alone and the empty hallway and living room also show no sign of any other characters which highlights that he Is living alone. The high contrast lighting supported by the lamp connotes that there is a good and bad side to this setting or for the character themselves. The text on the screen says Liam Neeson making viewers aware of the actor who is famous for playing previous heroic roles In action/thriller films which symbolises that Liam Neeson will again be the hero in this film.

This wide shot show the character concentrated on reading the flyer in his hand. This flyer may represent something special or important in the storyline. Furthermore the high contrast lighting focuses the audience on the character in the shot and not anything in the surrounding  highlighting that this character is a ray of home compared to the dull surroundings. The light which is shone on the character allows us to see the colour that he is wearing which is a light grey. Often this colour is associated with boring and old which could signify the characters personality, dated and boring which connotes to the audience the dull person that he is.

 This shot is very important. The image in the photo frame is the dominant in this shot as it allows us to see a young girl riding on the horse. This shows us that the younger child from the character’s dream is this girl and to support this there is also a horse. This underlines that the character may be her father and also has significant role in the whole of the film. The high key lighting allows the audience to clearly see this image and acknowledge the relationship between the father and character. The title also appears in this shot. The simple and bold title efficiently connotes to the audience that somebody is ‘taken’ and with the girl being beside this title connotes to the audience that it may be the girl who gets taken.  

 This close up clearly shows the upper half of the character face. The high key ambience in the shot allows us to see the colour that the character is wearing. Again this is a dark grey which symbolises to the audience the dull and boring person that he is considering that he is also a father. This shot gives a clear idea of how the character looks and we can see that he is happy which highlights that he is enjoying a conversation. Also the lighting highlights the wrinkles on his face representing his age and tiredness.

This shot is a deep shot as it allows the audience to see significant items in the background of the shot as well as the character themselves in the front of the shot. We can see the strained expression of the character with the parcel he is wrapping up connoting to the audience that the character has a history of being a perfectionist. It can also suggest that the gift is important to he so he has to ensure that it is perfect. The object in the background is his suit which connotes to the audience that he is attending a formal event which is why he is making sure the parcel is wrapped appropriately.

Se7en Film Analysis

Se7en

This is the title credits for the classic crime thriller film ‘Se7en’.

This close up shot emphasises that the book is in focus in this shot. Drawing attention to the book allows the viewers to notice the rigid edges of the book underlining that the book is old. The background of the shit is not in focus leaving the viewers to only focus on the book and text in the shot. Furthermore, the contrasting lighting in this show connotes the good and bad uses of this book or the message the book brings out building tension about why this book is significant. The white text positioned slightly right centre stands out from the dull colours in the background. This allows the audience to clearly see that new line cinema who is infamous for its thriller films make have created this movie so viewers know that they are going to watch a good film.

The overhead shot shows a pair of hands placed on square pieces of paper which underlines that they could be measuring the hands. Again the shot contains high contrast lighting which vaguely allows the audience to see one of the hands which is very veiny and looks grey. This connotes to the audience that the person whose hands they are is dead or severely ill due to the condition of their skin. The high contrast lighting can again highlight to the audience that the person whose hands they are has a good or bad aspect to them. The white text again stands out so the audience acknowledges that the film is directed by David Fincher who is known for producing previous successful thriller films including fight club. This will connote to the audience that will be watching a well structured thriller film.

 This big close up shows a man peeling his skin off with a metal blade. This action already highlights the frantic and unsettling atmosphere the thriller film holds and can build tension to see why this is happening. Also the lighting in the background of this shot is very dark so the audience cannot see anything in the background. This can cause mystery and unease amongst the audience as they do not know what is around this person, or who is.

 This is the name of the film. The font that is used for the title is rigid which may be used to symbolise the rigid storyline the film has connoting to the audience the plot is strange and unusual. Also the title itself has the number ‘7’ in it to replace the ‘V’ in the title. This underlines to the audience that this is a significant number throughout the film and has great importance. The colour of the title contrasts with the very black background which may represent the dark themes and the title itself representing good, especially with the number 7.

This shot shows a big close up shot of a book. We can see that a shadow (a thriller convention) has formed on the book which shows that an individual is reading or researching about something as he is getting rid of irrelevant information. This connotes to the audience that this could be a doctor as the word ‘pregnant’ is at the top of the page so it involves women who are often stereotyped to be vulnerable and weak. Again high contrast lighting is apparent in this shot as the shadows doesn’t allow the audience to clearly see the words on the page compared to the left hand side where the words are more clearer. This connotes that information on this page secretive and is also bad.

 This shot shows an image of a young boy’s eyes being crossed out. This could represent the person who crosses the child’s eyes out is paranoid that the child is staring at them.  This creates an unsettling and uneasy atmosphere as children are also stereotyped to be victims which are apparent in thriller films. The low key lighting in the shot also makes it difficult for the audience to see anything other than the image of the boy and the text. The text in this shot is a lot larger and is at centre screen which connotes that they want this to be noticed and because of the quick cuts in the opening the image of the boy is not focused on although this does catch the eye of the audience.

 This shot shows a close up of a man sticking nail tape down onto the book. The man’s hands in this shot are covered in small cuts and have a plaster on it. This connotes that the man has had a fight or been doing something dangerous for his hands to be so distort and injured. This can symbolise that this character is a dangerous person as they are careless. The lighting in this shot is dim although there is enough light to see what the character is doing and what his hands look like.

 This overhead shot zooms into the images that are placed on the surface. The images are in black and white which highlights the era that this thriller film has been set in previous eras and not in modern time. The images are of dead people who have been bandaged up which connotes to the audience that the setting is in a laboratory of some sort highlighting that murder is another relevant topic to the film which builds tension due to this. Because of the pictures of victims it highlights that detectives and police are also involved which is another thriller convention.

This big close  up of the dollar bills highlights that money may be relevant in the film. Money is often a common convention of a crime thriller film as crime can often be motivated for money. This shot also focuses on the word ‘god’ which signifies that religious morals and conspiracies may also be relevant which can be hugely controversial. This builds tension because binary oppositions good and bad are often represented through religious aspects. 

Crime Thriller Sub-Genre

Crime Thriller is a sub-genre that I will focus my coursework on.  Having researched Thriller as a whole genre it has given me an insight into what codes and conventions the audience will expect to see including color representation, camera angles and quick editing. For a thriller film, the crime sub genre will incorporate the film with a crime-based plot for the film. For example, these plots will often be associated with typical crime based concepts, including a murders, robberies, threats and manhunts. 
Some codes and convention include

• The typical plots include: abductions, murders and robberies. 

• Characters include: gangsters or some protagonist, victim and the detectives.

• Common objects: a gun, knife, police sheriff badge, money etc.

• Shots: close up, big close up, medium two shot, long shot and over the shoulder shot.

• Editing: quick and obstructive, fast paced and eerie music, different transitions.

• Lighting: often high-contrast lighting or low-key lighting to retain mysterious theme. 

It is often focused on the criminal itself and the protagonist (usually the detectives, or main character) in order to build a modern day crime thriller. Crime thrillers are likely to have a hybrid genre of actions and psychological aspects to build tension and suspense for the audience. 

Thriller Terms

What Makes a Thriller Film?

For any film, expressing the Genre has to be shown throughout in order to be classified. This can be done by including specific codes and conventions, certain narratives and using a range of different techniques. Often the codes and conventions of a thriller film can heavily focus on the editing and sound throughout, using ‘quick cuts’ in order to build tension and suspense amongst the audience. Tension should be present through the majority of the film in order to allow the film to accentuate the mysterious and un ease feeling for the audience. A thriller films purpose is in fact to ‘thrill’ the audience so the themes of mystery should be adapted. Lighting in a thriller film,  primarily low key lighting can be used in order to bring the mystery theme into action as viewers are unable to see efficiently causing them to feel intrigued and ‘think’ about what exactly is happening on screen. High contrast lighting may potentially be used in order to highlight the good and bad roles within a film or help producers foreshadow the future of the character. For example, in the first scene of the movie ‘sixth sense’ the loopy mental patient is shown in high key lighting expressing that he is the more notorious and powerful figure, compared to Bruce Willis who sits in low key lighting which foreshadows his weak and vulnerable position compared to this- this demonstrates the high contrast lighting between mis en scene’s. 

Colour may also be used to represent certain character to send a message to the audience. Often the colour red may be signified throughout a film in order to symbolise a message to the reader, for example ‘red’ can often be associated with romance or happiness, yet in a thriller film it may symbolise high emotion or violence. Other colours often include shades such as black or white to symbolise good and bad, as well as contradict to the darker plots.

The characters are placed within a binary opposition, often matching good vs. bad roles. This underlines that thriller films often have a heroic person, and the bad person is known as an antagonist.

Other techniques of a thriller film include obtrusive editing, disorientated sense of time and sense, a range of different close up and extreme close up shots, and tracking of the camera. Narrative techniques, include a range of different concepts which help the viewers to determine the genre of the film. For instance, the plot usually has many twists and turns to it in order to keep the viewers in suspense, increased amount of violence, principles of concealment, flashbacks and making the audience think. The ‘Thriller’ genre often has many sub genres’ which can define the plot and theme of the film more efficiently. For example, the following are some examples of sub-genres:

• ·         Conspiracy Thriller

•         Crime Thriller

• ·         Erotic Thriller

• ·         Political Thriller

• ·         Psychological Thriller

• ·         Spy Thriller

•       Supernatural Thriller

• ·         Techno (action/science fiction) Thriller

• ·         Religion/Cultural Thriller

Often, these are combined with other genres, such as romance or horror in order to create a ‘hybrid genre’ demonstrating that the film doesn’t focus on one genre specifically, this highlights that other codes and conventions may also be present.