Questionnaire time!

We sent out a questionnaire in order to try and get feedback on what type of media production to produce. This is a copy of our questionnaire; 

1. What gender are you?             Male                  Female 

2. What age group do you represent?          15-20           21-30           31-45+

3. Please list a few of your favourite thrillers?

4. What do you consider to make a good thriller? (please Circle)

• Impressive non-diegetic sound
• Special effects
• Good camera work
• high-quality acting
• good quality lighting

5. How many times during a month would you watch a thriller movie?

6. Are you currently in further education at school?

No

Yes

7. What non diegetic sound do you believe to be effective (please tick)

Sombre

Intense

Dramatic

Eerie

Mysterious

8. Who would be someone you would likely to watch a thriller movie with?

Boyfriend/Girlfriend 

Family 

Friend’s 

Grandmother 

9. Where would you expect a thriller movie to be set?

Town

City

Forest

Countryside

Other ________________________

10. What other conventions do you think a thriller should contain?

Sense of mystery

Anticipation

Hero /heroine and villain

11. What is your favourite type of thriller genre??

Action thriller

Conspiracy thriller

Crime thriller

Erotic thriller

Legal thriller

 Political thriller

Rape and Revenge films

Supernatural thriller

12. What is the average rating of film you would watch?

12 

12A 

15 

18 

R rated 

13. Which location do you believe to best setting for a thriller

Woods

Abandoned building

Village

Alleyway

Castle

School

Urban centre 

Film Institutions.

Sony Pictures Entertainment is one of the biggest film institutions and is part of the Motion Picture Association of America, even though it is a Japanese company. Sony own Tri-Star and Columbia pictures after buying the rights to them from The Coca-Cola Company back in 1989. Sony have produces blockbuster films over the years including Spiderman, Underworld and The Karate Kid. 

Sony also own a subsidiary company called screen gems. I think these would be ideal for producing our media production as they have made thrillers and tend to take bigger risk than other film institutions. They have produced movies like Resident Evil, Quarantine and Hostage. These films are of a similar genre to the type of media production I have produced. 

Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Entertainment have also produced television programs as well as their well know films.

Mise-En-Scene in thrillers!

Throughout all thriller movies there are certain elements of the mise-en-scene that remains the same. This can include use of similar props (weapon, rope), or a similarity of the locations used and things like lighting.


Weapons
Common use of props is found throughout thrillers. The use of of a weapon would be found in either a criminal thriller or an adventure thriller. In films like psycho there is the knife, possibly the biggest prop in the film. This adds a lot to the mise-en-scene as not only is there the prop itself, the knife is also kept in the shadow, which is another common element of mise-en-scene found in thrillers.

However use of other weapons can be found in differend sub genres of thrillers. In action adventure thrillers the use of a gun is more likely. This can be seen throughout films like James Bond and Mission impossible. The gun suggest a less sadistic attack than a knife, however in its own right brings a certain element of mise-en-scene. I gives of the vibe of recklessness of an attack.

Location.
Certain types of location will be used commonly throughout thrillers. It is key that the location is not too obvious to the audience. Usually it will be somewhere open and somewhere that the audience is unlikely to recognise with. The openness of certain locations give a sense of vulnerability. This can be seen in The Happening.

However most action in a thriller will take place in confined spaces, this will give the audience a sense of claustrophobia. The location element of the mise-en-scene of thrillers is used cleverly to represent different events, closed in locations suggest a more immanent danger, however a more open location suggest a more subtle danger.


Lighting.
Lighting in thrillers is described as low key lighting. This brings contrast to the colours more obviously and also casts heavier shadows. This is shown in more Noir style films. It can also be seen in films like Donnie Darko and The Woman in Black.

thriller sub-genres

In the thriller genre there are a few sub categories. How these thrillers use mise-en-scene, what the narrative is and how camera and lighting is used are all part of how a thriller is sub categorised. 

• Crime Thriller - This is a cross between a crime and thriller category, where it usually involves robberies, gangs or shoot outs where something has gone wrong. eg. No Country For Old Men
• Disaster thriller - This type of thriller is focusing on natural or artificial disasters, where the protagonist is expected to survive or save people from peril. eg The Day After Tomorrow
• Erotic thriller- This is a type of thriller which has erotica in it, and even though it's more erotic it can also be psychological and about lust. eg. Basic Instinct.
• Legal thriller- The justice system provides the backbone to this sub-genre. It usually involves a lawyer trying to prove their client is innocent after a set up or just accused. The lawyer's personal life usually gets involved and put on the line. eg. The Client
• Supernatural Thriller- A thriller which has supernatural aspects to it, this sub-genre is effective in building suspense, tension and occasionally has a twist. eg. The Sixth Sense
  
  
• Action Thriller- The most common type is action thrillers, as they're fast paced which keeps the action going throughout keeping the audiences attention, violent and have a lot of special effects.eg. The James Bond series.

Rule Of Thirds

We, as media professionals, will be using the rule of thirds alot. It's a method of positioning the shot so you catch all

Location Location Location!

For the main set of out thriller, the clincher, we've chosen an old abandoned air control tower. It is completely bare on the inside, there is nothing on the walls so it makes it perfect for the shoot! The Mise En Scene is awesome in there, it looks sinister, there is barbed wire around it and woods as far as the eye can see so our audience can get a real feel for how icolated it is.



BBFC

Brithish Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is a non profit, non government organisation. There mission statement is as follows;

'As a highly expert and experienced regulator, our mission is to:

• protect  the public, and especially children, from content which might raise harm risks

• empower the public, especially parents, to make informed viewing choices

• recognise and respect adult freedom of choice within the law

• respond to and reflect changing social attitudes towards media content through proactive public consultation and research

• provide a cost-effective, efficient classification service within our statutory remit

• work in partnership with the industry to develop innovative service models to provide content advice which support emerging media delivery systems

• provide an effective service to enforcement agencies '

They have a set of guidelines that a film must fit into in order to be of a certian catogory. These are broken down in to 'U', 'Uc', 'PG', '12', '12A', '15' and '18'. PG standing for Parental Guidence and U standing for Universal, or sutable for all ages effectively.

 Some of the main issues that the BBFC have in deciding the age restriction, or if the film should at all be released are;

Discrimination.

Potentially offensive content, relating to such matters as race, gender, religion, disability or sexuality, may arise in a wide range of works, and the classification decision will take account of the strength or impact of its inclusion.

Drugs.

No film is allowed to promote the taking of illegal drugs. If a film is promoting this then odds are that it will never reach your screen. However if it does show the serious impact or emphasise the danger then it is more likely to be allowed than if it showed no side effects. Any glamorisation of smoking or exsessive drinking will be taken into effect when the film is released.

Immatable Behaviour.

Any behaviour including smoking, drinking, bullying or carrying guns or knives that is deemed to be making it look glamorable will be restricted accordingly in order for kids not to copy or think it is a good idea. However anything that includes the glamorisation of things such as selfharming, hanging or anything putting ones self in immediate danger may be cut or not released at all.

A recent decision to ban a film would be the Human Centipede 2 directed by Tom Six. It was rejected on these grounds

'THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE 2 (FULL SEQUENCE) is a horror sequel in which a vulnerable and disturbed individual, sexually obsessed with the first film, attempts to create his own 'human centipede'. Unlike the first HUMAN CENTIPEDE, this work presents graphic images of sexual violence, forced defecation and mutilation and the viewer is invited to experience the event from the perspective of the central character. The central focus of THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE 2 (FULL SEQUENCE) is the sexual arousal of this character at the idea and later the spectacle of the total degradation, humiliation, mutilation, torture, rape and murder of his naked victims. There is little attempt to portray any of the victims in the film as anything other than objects to be brutalised and degraded for the amusement and sexual arousal of the main character and for the pleasure of the viewer. There is a strong and sustained focus throughout the work on the link between sexual arousal and sexual violence and a clear association between non-consensual pain and sexual pleasure.'