Initial Ideas
Initial Idea 1- Unsound Mind
A lonely man is sitting in the dark at his desk with only a
small amount of light from the lamp beside him. No one else is at the office as
it is afterhours. He has clearly been sitting there for a long time and hasn’t
slept in days. The desk is cluttered and papers and files are stacked high. The
dirty and unshaven man stares at the picture of his wife and child on the desk
with his detective badge placed next to this. The notations on the documents
become clearer. The documents are of that of a serial killer file. He shakes
out of his trance and then opens the files in front of him but each files ends
in the same way with a large red stamp “Case closed”. His pace begins to
increase as he opens the folder quicker only becoming angrier with every
cancelled case. The pressure snaps and he pushes all documents of the table and
reaches for his gun. He pulls it up to his head and slowly pulls the trigger
but only a click is heard as the gun is unloaded. He then lets out a shout and
screams “I tried” “I tried” as the gun drops to the floor. He slowly looks back
at the picture of his family and under his breath he whispers “I promise I
tried” the desk is then shown with the final open document in this is a picture
of his wife and child in a murder file with a large red stamp across it with
“Case Closed!”
Main character Miller: Miller is a middle aged detective
with a wife and kid. He has been on the force for many years and has always
strived to achieve the highest rank in his work. Miller had never been unable
to lose a case and was known well for his work on the force. Once he had
started a case he wouldn’t rest until he had finished it. His son is 6 years
old, Miller is a family man and would do anything for his family. In the
opening miller is depicted as a broken man with uncut messy hair and an
outgrown beard. He is shown unfocused on his work. Miller is wearing a suit
which is dirty and ruffled and a holster on his side.
Location: an office after hours. Most areas are dark with
only some natural light from the windows and a small lamp on the side of the
desk.
Props: Bottle of Jack Daniels/Black Suit/Holster and
gun/Picture of wife and kid (Framed)/detective badge/stack of files/Desk/Standard
desk equipment
Initial Idea 2- Hunter
A man dressed in a full suit stands in the middle of a clear
office building in front of him is a large board nailed to the wall. The man is
holding a picture in his hand. He brings the picture up to his face and takes a
deep breath. He begins to slowly walk towards the board and the information
becomes clearer. The board has pictures all being connected by string in a
large elaborate web. He begins to reach out and place the photo in his hand on
the board in the direct centre. The photo has many wires branching out. The
man’s phone rings as he hesitates to answer. On the fifth ring he answers and
pulls the phone to his ear. A voice echoes through the phone “We have got him”
this is followed by the phone being slammed down. The man dropped the phone as
it crashes to the floor. The man walks over to his desks and rummages around in
the bottom draw. He pulls out a bottle of scotch and lights up a cigar as a
small smile appears on his face. With whiskey in hand and cigar in mouth he
walks over to the board once again and presses the cigar up against photo
burning a hole in the face. As the fire spreads across the wires it shows that
a fire can spread.
In a dark area the man in the picture is tied to a chair
covered in cuts and scares with duct tape around his mouth. Two men in suits
walk over to him and rip of the duck tap. The tied up man starts to paint
heavily as the men in suits keep asking him “Where’s the Explosives” and
pulling his head back. The tied up man spits blood at him. The men in suits
have had enough and push back the chair and place a towel over his pace
Main character: Jack Brown: is a young hot shot military
specialist. Jack has just finished his first tour in Afghanistan as part of
seal team six. His whole family have been part of the armed forces and his
great grandfather died in ww2 and his grandfather in Vietnam. You could say he
was born into the military. Jack wears an I-patch due to an IED explosion.
Where a piece of shrapnel took out his eye. He is an unmarried man with no
kids. Jack is very young and rebellious and try’s to stay on track but often
diverts off. Dude to his injury jack couldn’t continue his role as a sniper and
as much as he begged he got kicked out the unit. He still works for the military
but not on the battlefield but rather working on cases behind closed doors for
the CIA.
Props: Solid white board/Black suit/American
flag/wire/mobile phone/
Location: Offices and a warehouse. The offices should have a
large amount of desks and should be well lit with files and draws. The office
should look as government orientated as possible. The warehouse should only
have one source of light from an overhead lamp and the surrounding area should
be completely black out. The warehouse should be complete empty.
Initial Idea 3- Firing Line
Coated man walks across the street. The man then pulls his
phone out of his pocket after hearing it ring. The conversation is short and
just a confirmation that he has the device. The phone call is then interrupted by
an agent standing behind him demanding he puts his hands on his head. The agents
begins to walk towards him and place the gun on his back. The coated man turns
round and disarms him leaving the man defenceless. The coasted man hits the
agent and then spins his arm and punches him whilst on the floor.
Props: Prop gun/ suit/ glasses/ hard drive/ leather jacket
Location: busy road next to the high-street. The street
should have a large amount of cars. The other location is an ally this is where
the main action will take place.
Script I created from my Initial idea
Script I created from my Initial idea
A location Report was needed to show where my film would be placed.
Survey analyses
Question 1 – What is your age?
I asked this question to identify the age of the respondents filling in the questionnaire. The age of the respondents is needed because different age ranges will answer the survey differently. This is because they will have different customs on films. The result was the majority were 17 and under with a few over the age of 25 but not enough to have an effect on the survey over the huge amount of 17 and under. This will have had an effect on the answers given as they are mostly from the same age demographic. Which will create biased survey results towards the younger generation. This will affect my final project as I am going to adapt my opening sequence around the answers given by the respondents but the answers will be all from a young age demographic so my opening may not appeal to an older viewer. I want my opening to have a older audience so I’m going to look at the survey answers given from the older participants and focus on their given information.
Question 2 – What is your gender?
This question was asked to find if the majority of respondents were male or female. Opposite genders may answer the survey questions differently as they have different views on certain situations. The results for the gender was almost 50/50 with 11 females and 10 males. This is great as it will give an equal response to the survey and will give me the best possible answer for my survey. This result will affect the final project as my answers will have equal gender respondents so they will be fair and the information I use from this survey will appeal both to females and males which I intent my opening to be.
Question 3 – Which film out of the following thrillers is most iconic and why?
I ask this question to identify what thriller the respondents like the most and give a reason why they liked it. I used this question so I can use the same style and techniques as the respondents most loved thriller. Thrillers can be very different and they all have their own unique feel but some attract more attention than other. Out of the selection of thrillers “Inception” received the most votes but I also asked them why they saw it as the most iconic and nearly all of the responses were the same and talked about how it had an original style as well as a strong storyline with many twist which makes you think and leaves the audience constantly on edge. Next was “Shutter Island” and “Psycho”. Again the respondent enjoyed the feeling of constant wondering and being on the edge of their seat waiting for what will happen next. They all also have huge twist at the end which leaves the audience wanting more. This will affect my final product as I will make my opening consist of the respondents most loved parts of each thriller and try to combine these to give the audience everything they want in a thriller. I will style my opening around inception this is because it was the majority favourite and even people who picked the other thrillers still love the inception style due to it being so iconic. This will affect my opening sequence as I will have the audience unaware what is happening with a gradual build-up of action and then end with them wanting more.
Question 4 – What genre of music works best with a thriller?
Question 5 – Does action improve a thriller opening sequence?
I asked this question as many thriller opening sequence contain action but it doesn't make the opening good. It really depends on personal preferences when it comes to fans of action. Thrillers can have a sub-genre which can effect if action is used in the opening. The respondents voted (14) for YES and (7) for NO. This shows that most people liked action in the opening sequence. Action in an opening sequence can draw the audience in from the start and build them up for the rest of the film also a dramatic start makes the audience want to keep watching to see what happens next. This will affect my final product as I will focus on action in the opening and make sure that the audience is interest and involved right from the start. This means my opening will have to be fast pace and use aftereffects to create the dramatic effects. This also means the opening will focus less on the story and more on the action.
Question 6 – Who would you prefer to be the main character in a thriller?
I asked this question to determine what character is most wanted in a thriller. Characters are a huge part of thrillers as their gradual build up during a film is what creates the amazing suspense and most times creates a plot twist. The audience should feel linked with the character as if they are going through the story with them. The main character is going to be the key focus point during the film so they have to be loved as they will have a large amount of screen time. The most voted character was “Male aged 20-30” this won the majority of the vote. This is because most iconic thriller characters are in this age range so the respondents associate with a younger male when they think of thrillers. Also thrillers are meant to be gritty and dark and most people don’t like to see a female in this situation. Females over the age of 30 didn't even get a single vote which shows the respondents don’t want a mature female main character. Nearly all of the results went towards males with only a very small amount female even when the gender of the respondents was split most of the females voted for a male lead. This is going to affect my final projects as my main character will be a male aged 20-30.
Question 7 – What characteristics would you expect for a thriller main character?
I asked this question as the characteristics of the main character effect the tone of the opening sequence and most main characters are determined who they are to the audience through the opening. This is done to show the audience who the character is from the start and give them a quick understanding about his/her style. I also want to know what the most common characteristics are for a thriller main character so I can make my character the opposite to the expected so I can break the mold and switch the stereotype. Most of the respondents answered to question with the same characteristics of the expected male thriller character using words such as “Brave and Smart” they all describe the characteristics as the main character being very strong and as if he has the ability to control the situation most females also want a male lead as they find the main characters attractive but the stereotype becomes repetitive so I will change this and choose the opposite to what people expect from a thriller character to give them a completely new experience. This will affect my final product as I will make main character fearful and weak and act as if everything is harder to achieve but then you discover him becoming stronger as the film progresses and the audience will progress with him.
Question 8 – What is the best thriller location?
I asked this question as location is everything. If the location is set correctly it adds so much more effect to the scene. Different locations add their own individual mood on a scene and the audience will feel like they are in the location if it fit well. Most thrillers are generally set in a large city this is because so much is going on and the idea of the large city makes the main character feel small and if the world is too much for them. Thrillers are generally also set in creepy locations to make the audience off edge. The most voted location was “Large City”. This location won by a huge margin. This is because the stereotypical thriller film is set in a large city so most people believe this is the perfect thriller location. Next was “Mental Asylum” which got the second highest vote this is because a mental asylum is a standard creepy place with lots of problems that can happen and the stereotype is of them being bad. This affects my final product as it will be set in a city location so people can associate it with being thriller and again a lot can go wrong in a city.
Question 9 – What is the best Sub-Genres of a Thriller?
I asked this question as a thriller can have very different and unique styles when it is teamed with a strong sub-genre. The sub-genre can changed the tone of a thriller as it adds its own twist upon the film. Most thrillers are commonly linked with other genres. The respondents voted psychological thriller as the best sub-genre this was the highest voted by a large margin. Most people probably voted for this because when someone thinks of a thriller the films that come to mind are mainly psychological thrillers. This is because they both genres work very well together and when used correctly create an incredible film. Next best sub-genre was action thriller again the fast paced action and exciting scenes create and enjoyable film. This will affect my final project as I will make my film opening a psychological thriller combined with action I’m going to do this because they were the two highest rated sub genres.
Question 10 – In a thriller what are the most important elements to you?
I asked this question as thrillers have their own unique style to them as certain elements are focused on more than others. Thrillers have to use a good combination of elements to create a strong film altogether. All of the elements I ask the respondents are necessary and need to be good but I wanted to know what elements are most noticed in thrillers so I can make sure I use them correctly. My results showed that plot twists were the most important elements but I can’t create a plot twist in an opening sequence. The next was music. Music is commonly used in the opening to films and is great for creating a good mood to the film and showing the audience through music what the opening is going to be about. This affects my final project as I will focus music and make sure that the music fits in well with what is being shown. I will still be focusing on all of the elements listed but will focus on the music and plot twist the most.
VOX pops Interviews
The VOX pops interviews was created for extra evidence on what people think about thrillers and how this will effect my final opening sequence.
The first question is what was your favorite thriller and why? From this I got a ranged of mixed answers but the reasons why they liked the thrillers were along the same line. the participants all agreed that a good thriller grips an audience with a strong character build up and a strong story line. The character has been proven to be very important in a thriller as both the video interviews and survey has the character as a big point of interest. This means I will focus on my main characters characteristics in my opening sequence.
The participants were asked what makes them want to watch a thriller? They answered this question with a wide range of answers. some talked about a good trailer and advertisement. Others talked about the feeling on suspense and how they are kept on the edge of their seat the whole way through the interview. This will effect my final project as it will focus on suspense and the sudden build up. I will do this by not giving anything away in the story and make the character keep guessing.
Most Thrillers need to have build up of fear. This is hard to maintain because the audience will all have different fears. to find out what the audience finds the most scary i asked them what would scare you in a thriller? Bugs and insect swarms was a popular answer, this is expected as a common fear is insects and being out numbered and the feeling of having no chance. The fear of isolation also was a common fear. this is used allot in modern thrillers to add the effect of having no help. This will effect my final opening sequence as i will use the fear of isolation to draw in the audience.
All the participants agreed that thrillers is not an overused genre and its a shame that it is isn't used much in today modern film. Once interviewer even stated when they do hear about a thriller it is always good. This shows that people enjoy watching thrillers.
For the final question I asked the participants was what iconic features would you see in a thriller? I asked this question so i can use the common features in my opening so i can show that it is a thriller. The most popular answer was music. Music is massively used in the opening to a film and it is used to set the scene but the correct music must be used or it will give of the wrong feeling to the audience. They also mention how the story is always twisting and how the audience is overloaded with information towards the end of the film. Since i am only created the opening i can start the build up of the character in the opening to lead on for the rest of the film.
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