Ideas 4 flaShBaCkss

• To introduce our title "apprehension" We think it would be a good idea if one of his flashbacks was of a close up of a dictionary with the word apprehension as the word he's looking up. The rest of the definition will be blurred out for a few seconds to emphasis the title.
• Another one would be of him shaving his hair off.
• Another being him burning a picture of a girl
• ripping up pictures
• smashing the glass on the floor
• drinking smoking
• crying
• slamming the door
• crying in an alley
• And then the final one being a scene with the girl from the photo and him enjoying a happy day out as if they are going out.

Feedback from presentation of idea

1. We have now realized that we need to do test shots of 360degree tracking shot, to work out how we can effectively and smoothly do this shot, for example using a dolly or other moving contraption. .
2. Also we need to think of our health and safety when filming, due to the lateness of filming and how busy the main road is. 
3. And also we need to find out how to get there and organize ourselves well.
4. We need to consolidate our ideas for the memory flashes and work out where we are going to film theme and decide on music soundtrack.

Ideas for opening sequence

Title ideas

• Disturbed mind
• Neurosis
• The Resentment
• Apprehension

Music ideas

• Diegetic sound of cars and footsteps etc when going through thoughts in his mind as they are walking.
• Non diegetic sound of suspense music throughout the intro
• Non diegetic sound of echoes of voices etc from his memories and thoughts 

Lighting Idea

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Our thriller opening sequence initial ideas

We are hoping to create a psychological thriller.

The start of the thriller will begin with the murderer walking through a dark park with thoughts flashing through his mind like the exchange of a picture of his victim, past thoughts like being with a lover (who turns out to be his victim, which fits in the sub-genre convention that the protagonist has an Achilles heel, the love for his victim) and other thoughts, with the credits passing by in a fairly plain font, which is white and bold and will side on and off the screen. At this point in time the audience has not seen his face.


As he comes to the end of the path, we want to do a 360degree tracking shot around the murderer, stopping on his face, then a zoom in on his eye, as if going into his mind.

Once in his mind, we want to show the following murder, exactly how he wants it to happen, but then we want to zoom out from his eye, coming out of his mind, to see the reality of whats going to happen. The girl he's supposed to be murdering notices him disappears, and he is unable to complete his mission.

Location for thriller!

We all agree that Steve's idea for a crime thriller is a brilliant idea but we know we need to think about it in more depth and think of a more detailed storyline.

I have found a few dirty alleys in our local area which would be perfect for the setting, one is an alley way off Wilkin Street, near mill road and another is near Waterstones in the centre of town.

Another idea is that we could use a friend's chinese restaurant, china chef, opposite the Cambridge United football ground. Also the area around there would be perfect for the crime thriller setting. WE have permission from the owners to use the restaurant.

Also near this Restaurant, Behind CU,  there is a dingy back path through some cow fields which are badly lit and would fit in with our opening sequence very well.

Ideas for thriller opening sequence

For our thriller opening sequence I propose to do a sub-genre, maybe crime?

Setting

I think setting the opening sequence in a run down area or part of a town would be good. An old, New York-style back alley with rubbish pouring onto the street, flickering lights and shattered glass to make the audience feel uneasy and uncomfotable with the area where the crime will or already has taken place.

Costume

An old Italian-style trench coat worn by the muderer or suspected muderer in order to hide his identity and give a sense of mystery to the scene, Which should make the audience want to watch the rest of the film.

The Narrative

The opening sequence will centre around a crime or a murder. We could have the scene begining with a couple of gun shots fired in the distance and then focussing on a mysterious alley way where the suspect walks out and looks both ways and either legs it or casually tries to act like nothing has happened. The next scene cuts to the morning where two detectives are at the scene of the crime investigates and testing for finger prints. 

  

Fargo : Crime thriller intro

FARGO



In Fargo the main theme is a kidnapping. In the opening sequence they talk about how they are planning to kidnap the protagonists wife to enable him to gain a hefty some of money from his father-in-law. This also fits with another convention of a crime thriller because you follow the planning and execution of the kidnap.


The film contains a variety of different characters from varied backgrounds e.g. Theres a duo of bounty hunters with the dopey sidekick and the stereotypical 'leader'.

The protagonist, Jerry, is also seen as an outsider in his own family, his father-in-law says to him that Jerry's wife and son will always free of money troubles, but he doesn't include Jerry in this. Also his idea of the line between right and wrong is blurred, because any normal man wouldn't plan the kidnap of his own wife just to get money, he would do it by vaguely decent means.

Conventions of a Action Thriller

• From the start there is a lot of movement and action is immediate.
• There is a high level of violence and they use a lot of weaponry e.g. Guns. There is more blood then in your average thriller.
• A high value motive usually involving money.
• There is a lot of secrets and manipulation of people.
• The protagonist in a typical action thriller usually has an mental weakness or an emotional flaw; the protagonist is usually framed or is given a mistaken identity and uses brute force to escape.
• Action thrillers usually have contrapuntal music with an action feel to them.
• 

Memento opening sequence

The opening sequence of Memento is very effective and uses many different conventions to do so.

The use of the non-linear narrative and reversing of time disrupts the sense of continuity which make the perception of reality confused and not immediately perceptible. Also the use of string instruments through the theme music creates a unstable and builds tension because string instruments are built around the tension of their strings which can give them a very sharp and long sound.

The use of the panning from his point of view of the empty room helps us to identify with the main character because we are able to see through his eye. This also establishes location.

During this you are able to hear the voice of the protagonist through the use of a voiceover; this is used as a stream of consciousness to give you an insight into the psyche of the protagonist: An unstable, lonely and in a confused state which shows us that he is an unreliable and unpredictable narrator yet we are invited to identify with him.

Also one of the classic thriller conventions is that the thriller is based around a crime or a series of crimes and "Memento" links to this through the murder in the first scene.

The mise en scene show use the writing on his hand and shows us his Achilles heel, being his inability to create new memories, which makes him use his body as a notebook to remember important information. This fault makes him vulnerable to manipulation and also heartless and dangerous because he feels no remorse because he has a dual identity which enables him to kill without care or memory of his actions. Also this shot shows us that to aid his memory he also has to take polaroid pictures and keep them as mementoes of different situations he comes across, e.g the murder shown in this polaroid.

All these different conventions help to create a feeling of suspense and tension, done through subtle techniques. 

Psychological Thriller Conventions

Psychological Thrillers use the conventions of classic thrillers, but they also have their own sub conventions. These include: The central theme of 'Identity' which involves mistaken identity, stolen identity, dual identity, doppelgangers, confused identity and amnesia. The theme of 'Perception and Reality' can give the sense of seeing the narrative from the perspective of multiple characters. A character having a different perspective of what is and what isn't real compared to the norm establishes in the film. The theme of 'Memory' can often involve the torture of an individual with a traumatic memory. The trauma of a specific last memory (i.e. the death of a friend that haunts the characters). The theme 'Stream of consciousness' is a device of ten used in psychological thrillers to give an insight into the psyche of a particular character — usually the main protagonist. Another common convention used is an 'Unreliable Narrator'. Psychological thrillers often play on the idea of the inherited trust placed in the narrator or the central character that the narrative follows. 'Technical devices' such as flashbacks and repetition in editing are common. 'Imagery' — a close up of eyes are a frequent motif, also another classic psychological thriller convention.

Analysis of Thriller opening sequence - "Marnie"

We watched one of Alfred Hitchcock's classic thrillers "Marnie". The opening credits were in the format of a book with the page turning transitions. The music behind it at the beginning made it seem like a fairytale  or a classic romance. However, after 46 seconds of the credits the pace of the music suddenly changes into   a more thrilling and suspense creating piece.

The credits cut to a close up of this yellow bag, which could possibly be a mcguffin, in the arms of a mysterious woman. Gradually as she moves away from the camera you see more of her but you don't see her face yet. Which makes her whole image, with her black wavy hair and dark clothing, seem all the more mysterious. In a way her body is objectified.

Then the narrative is introduced by this scene cutting to another one of an older business man bluntly saying "robbed"while looking straight into the camera morosely. The use of dramatic pauses inbetween each word he says gives the audience an impression that the crime is very important to the narrative as the character is lost for words. Also in one of the thriller opening conventions is that most thrillers have  a crime either at the beginning of the story or somewhere through this story and "Marnie" uses this convention well.

Sean Connery appears and you instantly know he's going to be an important character due to mysterious entrance and the way that all the other characters respond to him quickly and directly. Also he is an extremely handsome man and in most films the leading male character has a mysterious and attractive appearance. 

Then the scene cuts again to the original woman walking through a hotel to her room. Within the room she splits all her belongings into two different bags, changes her social security card and empties her bag of a large sum of money, all these things being very suspicious and lead you to ask questions about who this woman is.

Finally you see her with her hair in the sink removing the black hair dye from her hair, this is when you finally see her face, revealing who this mysterious woman is.

Preliminary Task

The shots we had to use are: Establishing shot, Close up, Match on Action, Reaction shot, Long Shot, Filming a conversation, all whilst maintaining the 180 degree rule! Good on ya steve-o