GENRE, AUDIENCE AND INSTITUTION

Genre is a relevant concept for audiences, as we as the audience go by the genre of the film when choosing which film to watch. 

Genre is important to film production companies because they need to know what to include in their films in order to make it a particular genre. Film companies will need to consider the conventions that they want to include to show what genre it is and they will need to consider who the film Is targeted at and what they can include in the film to interest there target audience even more. 

Genre is also useful for film distribution companies, for example: advertising and marketing companies as they are able to use the conventions of the certain genre in order to make it immediately recognisable to the target audience, therefore drawing the target audience to the media text. For example, creating a poster that doesn’t give a lot away but intrigues the viewer and makes them want to watch it. 

SUB GENRES

Although the thriller genre is extremely varied compared to other genres, within the thriller genre there are several sub genres which means that within the films there is a high degree of similarity.

Below are three different film posters for sub-genre films, however they all use the same conventions in order to create these texts.  ( Nightcrawler, Sin City: A Dame to kill for & The November Man - all Crime Thrillers )



Through the use of Mise en scene we can clearly see what type of genre this film is most likely to be. The lighting in this picture is very dark which contrasts with the title font which is very bright. The man is standing on his own makes him look independent which connotes the idea that he may be the main character.

This poster is also very dark like the Nightcrawler. However from the poster the audience see a lot more characters than they do in the one above. Both of these posters use the colours black and red which connotes an evil and death theme again very similar to the NightCrawler.





This poster again uses the colours red and black connoting evil and death. Similar to the first poster we only see one character again telling the audience that this man is clearly independent and may be the main character. 

From looking at these three posters we as the audience can see that although they are different films they all use the same conventions in order to portray there sub - genre. All of these film posters use the colours black and red and they all have dark use of lighting which suggests an unpleasant tone to the audience.

THRILLER SUB GENRES

GENRE DIFFERENCE, REPETITION & SIMILARITY

The thriller genre of film is different from most other genres because on the surface many of them look entirely different from each other. For example the film, Seven, which is a psychological thriller, uses conventions such as synchronous sound bridge which matches the action in order to create suspense and effect as it's a psychological thriller where as 

the comedy thriller, The lady vanishes, uses conventions such as short jump cuts showing  different action - which again creates suspense but in a different way. Both of these films are within the same genre, however they are categorised under different sub - genres. 

However, although these two films have different sub genres they have things in common such as the way in which they are edited; they are aimed at completely different target audiences but they are edited in the same way which means they both create suspense. 

INTRODUCTION TO GENRE

Genre is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or entertainment, for example, music, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time as new genres are invented and the use of old ones are discontinued.

Genres can be identified by conventions, sound and editing. Conventions are what the audience associate with a genre. For example the convention of a film in the horror genre is most likely to be a dark isolated setting.

We also hear sound within films that help us define a genre. Different techniques used for different genres. For example: in family and comedy films we will normally hear a soundtrack which is non diegetic and linear to the narrative, however, in horror films and even a few thrillers, we hear contrapuntal sounds which don't fit with what is going on in the narrative.

Again to identify different genres in films editing techniques are used. In action and sometimes thriller films we see quick cuts and short duration shots to create suspense and give the feel of action. However, in romantic and family films we will see long duration of shots and less cuts, this is so we can take time to identify the characters emotions and empathise with them.

Some examples of genres are: Comedy, romance, animated cartoons, horror, thriller, action, crime, fantasy, sci-fi, family, teen, documentary, western, war, drama, indie, adult, musical and Bollywood. 

MINUTE MEETINGS

1ST MINUTE MEETING

WHAT WE DID

-We made decisions on what costume, location, props and set design we are going to for our title sequence and why. 
-We came up with three options for our location; Cornhill Manor, Adam's house or an actual hotel room, we looked at which was more cost effective and realistic for or title sequence. 
-We decided that which ever location we go for we are still going to have to manipulate it to suit our vision of the thriller. 
-We added more detail to our storyboards i.e. timing and sound.
 TARGETS
-Talk to Matt about new idea. 
-Film test shoot.
WORRIES
-Finding actors that would look old enough on screen and would be willing to play the part 
WHAT WENT WELL
-We made a few successful decisions, like with the costume and the props
-Completed the storyboard
-Agreeing with decisions in the group 

SECOND MINUTE MEETING

What we did:

-Worked on our new story board

Targets
-Test Shoot the new idea
- Talk to Matt about new idea

Worries
- Team work
- If the new idea will work

What went well
- Creating the story board
- Coming up with new ideas to improve it even more

THIRD MINUTE MEETING

WHAT WE DID

-Worked on new idea for opening title sequence
-Discussed new idea

TARGETS
-Test shoot the new idea
-Talk to Matt about new idea

WORRIES
-Developing new idea
-Team work; The group itself

WHAT WENT WELL
-The new idea really works
-Able to create tension with the new idea without making it generic
-Able to give characters a unique selling point

FOURTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did 
- Created a mood board 
- Discussed ideas to improve the opening sequence ( referring to what matt said ) 

Targets 
- Make the opening sequence more unique 
- Come up with a better plot twist to make it more interesting  

Worries
- The idea in general 
- How to develop it and not make it too generic 

What went well
- Creating the mood board gave us more ideas to improve the sequence 

SIXTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did
- presented our opening sequence to Matt

Targets
- Change the idea around
- Make it more unique
- Make it stand out

Worries
-Location for filming not found yet
-Coming up with new ideas to improve the sequence
-Giving in minute meetings
-Is our opening title sequence good enough?

What went well?
- Matt liked the idea and said it was very visual


SEVENTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did
- Worked on presenting the pitch to Matt
- worked on making it short and straight to the point
-Worked on the synopsis for the plot and title sequence
-Added more to the title sequence to make it longer

Targets
-Pitch the idea to Matt
-Create more tension for the title sequence 

What we did
-Came up with a synopsis quite easily
-Made the pitch quite simple

Worries
-Would Matt like our idea?


EIGHTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did 
- Looked back at the test shot 
- Discussed ways we could improve it.

Targets
- Make it more interesting at the end ( create more tension )

Worries 
- It may not be long enough 

What went well 
- We discussed ideas to make it longer and add more tension which we all agreed on.
- We liked the idea and it was good to look at what worked and what didnt. 

NINTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did
-Filmed test shoot
-Filmed according to the storyboard

Targets
Submit first 2 minute minutes

Worries
-Location for filming not found yet
-Continuity in filming
-Giving in minute meetings
-Is our opening title sequence good enough?

What went well
-Good timing during test shoot
-Generally successful test shoot

TENTH MINUTE MEETING

What we did
- Finished the opening sequence story board

Targets
- To do a test shoot of our opening sequence to see if it actually works.

Worries
- It may not work as well as we expect it to since the setting we planned is usually crowded ( subway tunnel )

What went well
- We decided on a new idea to improve the sequence
  
ELEVENTH MINUTE MEETING
 
What we did 
- We started sketching and discussing the opening sequence's camera angles, mise en scene, sound and the lighting we will be using. 
- Discussed where our location will be 
Targets
- Finish the opening sequence plan 
- Start making better decisions as a group that would be agreeable by everyone.
Worries
- That the group as a whole may not be happy with some of the decisions made
- Where the location will be 
What went well
- We were able to finish a good part of our storyboard which took some of the pressure out of the way
- We decided to use this idea and not the back up plan

TWELFTH MINUTE MEETING 

WHAT WE DID

-We made decisions on what costume, location, props and set design we are going to for our title sequence and why. 

-We came up with three options for our location; Cornhill Manor, Adam's house or an actual hotel room, we looked at which was more cost effective and realistic for or title sequence. 

-We decided that which ever location we go for we are still going to have to manipulate it to suit our vision of the thriller. 

-We added more detail to our storyboards i.e. timing and sound.

 TARGETS

-Talk to Matt about new idea. 

-Film test shoot.

WORRIES

-Finding actors that would look old enough on screen and would be willing to play the part 

-Hannah's absence

WHAT WENT WELL

-We made a few successful decisions, like with the costume and the props

-Completed the storyboard

-Agreeing with decisions in the group

THIRTEENTH MINUTE MEETING 

What we did

-We discussed and decided who are the people we are going to use as the actors.

-We discussed exactly all props we will need

-Basically finalized our idea thinking about every different aspect and everything we will need for the shoot. 

Targets

-Have everything ready to shoot by Friday.

-Figure out where we are going to get all our props. (We might need to buy some off ebay)

What went well

-We all came to decisions we are all happy about

Worries

-Worried that since our new idea was established recently we are afraid that it might be hard to be completely ready by Friday.

Pre Lim Editing Task

After my group and I had finished shooting our pre Lim task, we had the task of editing it on the Adobe Premier Pro equipment. Before editing the the Pre Lim we had two lessons to learn what to do. For example we learnt how to make 'bins' in order to organise the raw footage into sub-folders ready to edit. After we had done this we chose a series of clips, which if edited correctly, would create a well edited clip. 

To edit the clips we had chosen, we had to drag them onto a timeline in order to slot them together, creating a continuous scene. Above the timeline the software includes two separate screens; showing the whole clip on one window and the clip selected at the time on another window, making it easier to see what is going on. 

Throughout the task of editing I found I struggled when cutting the shots so they could all slot together, as we had to match the exact point in one clip to the same point in the following clip. However I learnt from this and having the opportunity to practise by doing a pre lim task most defiantly helped me.

Thriller Opening Sequence Development

Today in media I got put into the group I will be working with to create a thriller opening sequence. I will be working with poppy, stephanie and gugh. In today's lesson we each read our four ideas to each other, giving feedback on every sequence that was read out. We then decided on one idea out of the 16 that was read out to develop. We have chosen the opening sequence called "sisters" which was created by Stephanie, however we are now going to develop this idea and each add things to it from our original own ideas.

Thriller Opening Sequence Ideas

First idea: BURIED SECRET 

The film could be based around a love story where a couple are living together, however the man has disappeared and his wife has no clue where he is. As the film leads on the mans wife begins to find mystery items, For example keys, his phone and piece of paper with numbers on. His wife then begins an investigation to find out why his behaviour is very odd and where he keeps going which ends in being a big shock to both the audience and her, when we find out. 

The opening sequence could be the women getting a missed call voicemail off her husband on the way home from work In the car off an unknown number saying "hi love it's me I won't be back tonight" the women then gets home to find his car still parked in the drive way and his keys, phone and brief case still on the side. She then walks up stairs to their bedroom where she sees a piece of paper with phone numbers on and blood all over the floor. 

Second idea: LOST IDENTITY 

The film could be based around a young teenage girl who gets tortured by men who keep her in hiding for 3 years. Throughout the film we see her everyday life of being there slaves and having to obey there sexual needs and her struggle to finally escape. 

The opening sequence could start by a plain black screen with the title of the film it could then begin to follow the girl walking home on her own late at night after she has just been clubbing with her friends. We then see a car full of men pull up next to her and one of them get out and throw her in the boot. We then see the cars journey of driving out of the town they are in to a quiet secluded area where they reach an old little house on its own in the woods. Whilst we see the cars journey we here the diegetic sound of the girl crying and screaming in the back. As the men get the girl out of the car and carry her into the house we see them take off her clothes. At this point the screen will go black and the title of the film will appear again.

Third idea: INDICATION 

The film could be based around a killer who leaves clues to reveal his next victim after many times of doing this he finally gets caught but there is a reason as to why he left clues..... 

The opening sequence could be the killer standing over someone who he has just killed laying in a puddle of blood. It is late at night so as he sets off to leave he drags the body outside on the street for people to see in the morning and purposely leaves a piece of paper next to the body which reads " Next victim ... Blonde, small, blue eyes, wearing pink." We then see the man get in his car and drive off.

Fourth idea: U KNOW WHO 

The film could be based around a couple who have had a very acrimonious divorce and have moved away from each other, However the wife 3 years later gets a letter through the post from her ex husband which reads " YOU WILL DIE I WILL MAKE SURE OF IT, FROM U KNOW WHO " from this day on very weird things happen to the women which make the audience very confused. For example her bills go up, her tv is already on in the mornings when she wakes up and she wakes up nearly every night from hearing strange noises. She gets numerous people to check her house but every one thinks she is going crazy. The question is has her ex husband been living in her house without her knowing??? 

The opening sequence could start in the middle of the night where the women wakes up from hearing strange noises. She then realises no ones in her room so she can go back to sleep. We then see the women waking up in morning and getting her post from the door where she finds the letter, as she then walks into her lounge she realises the tv is on and the cushions on the couch have moved. We then see a close up of the women's face as she looks terrified.

                                                                             

Pre Lim Task

Today In media we formed groups of four and worked on a Pre Lim task. We each got given a script with short lines and stage directions to follow. Two of us including me chose to be the actors who were being filmed and the other two in the group chose to film. The two people working on the camera filmed many shots of us acting the scene; so we had lots to work with when it came to editing. The stage directions were for actor A to stand still in one position facing a door and for actor B to come through the door have a conversation with  actor A and then leave again. To start of with we practised the scene many times adding extra movements that we thought were appropriate before we finally started to shoot. 

To start with we began shooting a wide shot which when shown to the audience, they will be able to establish the place we were working in; they are also aware of the costumes we were wearing and the environment the scene was set in. 

After we had filmed at least three wide shots we then moved the camera behind my shoulder so as I faced the door waiting for actor B to enter; the audience could see it from my perspective, this is called an over the shoulder shot. This gives a close up effect of the other character and shows the view of actor A and there perspective of actor B. 

Again after we had shot this at least three times we then changed the position of the camera to behind the door looking through the glass at an over the shoulder shot from actor B's perspective; giving the audience a clear close up of actor A from the perspective of actor B. 

After we had done this we began to play around with different ways of filming on the camera. In the scene we had been shooting, when actor B finishes his conversation with actor B and leaves the room, actor A falls to the floor. To get this shot on camera we filmed the scene at a high angle shot and as Actor A fell to the floor we tilted the camera; making the audience feel they are falling with them. 

Today's lesson was a very interesting lesson which most defiantly gave us all a taster of what it will be like filming our thrillers. It was useful to work together in a group, sharing and coming up with ideas, however as we had not practised the scene enough times we had to keep on rehearsing it which took up a lot of time. I feel next time we also need to really focus on continuity as I felt positions kept on changing. Another vital thing we need to work on for next time is communication, for example when passing the camera we need to say out loud  ' passing camera ' as someone may not be there to catch it.