Water: This represents purity, washing away, covering up. Water washes away blood and covers up a crime. It is also a symbol of live as we need water to live so has strong meaning in a thriller.

Hands: Hands are what commit the crime, and so are important in a thriller. For example in 'When a stranger calls' hands are needed to dial a phone number. In 'The number 23' hands are needed to commit murder.

Weapons: This is a thriller convention because weapons are used to hurt people, we know that if a weapon is involved a murder will happen. The difference between a thriller and horror is that we know who the murderer is in a horror, we are left in suspense in a thriller.

Extreme close up shot: This shot is usually used for eyes, which are also a typical thriller conventions. An extreme close up shows even more detail than a close up. 

Establishing shot: This is also used in a thriller, usually in the opening sequence to establish the setting, which is usually an isolated place. 

Close up camera shot: This is a typical shot used in thriller films as it exaggerates small details, such as facial expressions. 

This film also received 5 stars, and was a suspense thriller. It was not a long film, only 85 minutes, however this is an advantage to the film as it was full of suspense and fast pace editing, however not too fast or it would have been difficult to follow. The story unravels until it reaches a climax when we know what is happening and all that's left is to see if the people survive. The setting is typical thriller as it is set 'in the middle of no where', suggesting the budget was quite low as there are no well known actors, also there is just one setting.

This is another thriller that received a certificate 15, also there was a higher male audience than female audience. There are 2 main characters, one male and one female, so you would expect the audience to be more 50/50, however there is 8% more males than females. The age groups are spread quite well, the audience consisted of more teens to younger adults, however there was still 13% of people over 35 that saw the film. 

This film managed to receive 5 stars, so was very popular with the audience. It is a 1979 film, a time when films were given a higher certificate than they would be now. The film would relate to teenage baby sitters as the girl is baby sitting 2 children when she gets a prank phone call from a mystery person. The fact that the film relates so much with the audience is the reason it receives 5 stars. 

This film was marked a horror/thriller and a certificate 15. This is again because of murder scenes and shots of dead people. The audience was more male than female, the main character is female, which could be a reason for a bigger male audience. The main character is also a teenager which obviously had an affect on the amount of teenagers and young adults that saw the film. 69% of the audience were aged 15-24, whereas 11% of the audience were aged 35 and over. 

This film received 4 stars and given the genre suspense thriller. The director has used a well known actor to sell the film, however other actors are not so well known, suggesting that the budget for the film was not very high, but high enough to afford Jim Carrey as the main character. The film received a certificate 15 due to violence and murder scenes. 

This research shows that more men than women went to see this film, however there is a not a massive difference between the figures, so on average the audience was a mix of male and females. The film was certificate 15 so obviously no one younger than this saw the film. The biggest audience was aged between 15 and 24, showing that more teenagers and young adults saw the film than middle age. There is an increase in the amount of people over 45 that saw the film, compared the the amount of 34-44 year olds. 

Opening sequences
When a stranger calls:
Diegetic sounds of phone ringing- communication
Black screen
Establishing shot of house- murder scene
House in darkness, except bedroom window
Red balloon- blood
Pan to fair ground- sets scene
Night time setting
Diegetic sounds of phone, and fair ride- playing a game with her
Long establishing shot- high angle
Slow pace editing, speeds up
Long shot watching people
Close up of spoon charms-eery, detecting movements?
Close up of children on fair rides, suggests childhood- playing games
Close up of fair ride
Pan to house, link between fair ground and house
Diegetic screaming
Red balloon- low angle shot to high angle shot symbolism
Music changes
Mid shot of red balloon- blood
Tracking shot children running
Diegetic sound of police car
Mid wide shot of red ballon, 2 of them let down one still blown up
Blue colour-police
Zoom to close up of mans face
Fade to black
Credits fade in in white
Cut zooms watching people
High angle shot of houses in street
Blue balloon-police
Yellow colours
Room in darkness, light comes on, woman in window, diegetic sound of screaming
Blue room- police, crime scene
Close up of oil pump, in shape of axe- weapons- death
After girl killed bumper cars crash- death

Whisper:
Black screen, white lighting “And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light’ Corinthians 11:14
Eery music, tense and heart beat raisin€g
Diegetic sound of bird
Establishing shot of wood cuts to 1 second shots of someone running
Low angle shot of woods
Fast pace
Close up of bird
Cut to womans legs running
Diegetic sounds of beathing
Diegetic growling
Diegetic sound of whispering- don’t stop
Red hat
Close up of her face
Animal chasing her
Close up of yellow scarf
Yellow colour- men at work
Close up of beasts face
Blue eyes black fur
Point of view from car
Mid shot of woman being run over
Eye level close up of woman dead on floor- eyes
Close up of picture of woman, yellow and red colours
Pan to close up of hands playing with toy cars
Whisper fades in- black background
Close up of mans face peering through window
Establishing shot of corner shop
Shot, shot reverse conversation
Long shot, someone watching them
Red colour
White colour
Close up, point of view shot out of window?
Close up of faces- expressions
Close up of hands
Soft non diegetic music
Zoom through doorway
Light shines strong through window
Close up of boys face
High angle shot of car pulling into house
Lots of white colour used
Religious non diegetic music

The Amityville horror:
Non diegetic music represents heart beat, pulse raising, tense
‘Based on a true story’
‘November 13th 1994
Close up of mans face, pans to eyes, then to mouth
Establishing shot of house, close up of drawings
Close up of eyes
Kill them- diegetic sounds
Close up of tv
Close up of clock
High angle shot of book- Evil Proof of God and ash tray- stress and anxiety
Mid shot of man loading rifle, cut zoom to close up of hands
Tracking shot of feet up stairs
Lightening- bad weather represents mood.
Close up of eye
Dull colours
Diegetic sounds of gun shot
Fast editing
Long shot of man walking into bedroom
Mid shot of couple asleep in bed
Close up of mans face
Close up of gun shot
Mid shot of windows- eyes of the house
Low angle shot of man from girls point of view
Flash of gun shot in eyes of house (windows)
Blue lighting- police
Diegetic sound of phone ringing- communication. ‘Everybody’s dead’
Low angle shot of house
Pan of house
Close up of files
Close up of hands and feet
Diegetic sounds of news reports
Establishing shot of house (one year later) setting scene
Close up on womans face, brighter colours
Point of view shot from little boys googles
White colours- purity, innocence

The number 23:
Number 23 typed
Pans across page, then straight cuts
The number 23- written in red
Credits typed in- like a type writer
Numbers- symbolism
Red- ink? Blood?
Black and red, evil
Non diegetic music, upbeat and eery
Slow pace editing- very repetitive
Music speeds up slightly, heart beat
Close up of number 23
Fade to high angle establishing shot of houses- stting scen
Main character is voice over.
Camera pans to man in van
Mid shot of woman walking dog in red coat- blood
Attention is on woman’s hands- thriller conventions
Close up of mans face
Red cup
Clock convention- time- repeated
Rewinds to close up of Christmas tree, December 23
Red flowers
Shot, shot reverse 2 characters talking
Ribbon on cake red

Evaluation

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In the opening of my thriller i have thought about typical conventions used in a typical thriller. For example images of hands, eyes using close ups and extreme close ups to exaggerate these conventions. for example in one shot there is an extreme close up of the woman's eyes, we wonder what she is thinking. My thriller is a hybrid as it contains both thriller and supernatural conventions. The supernatural convention is the use of a little girl who is dead. My thriller is influenced by the film 'Fight club' by its complex structure. It is a fast pace and hard to grip exactly what is happening and why. The opening sequence creates an enigma

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

This thriller appeals to anyone who enjoys the thriller genre. It would appeal to an audience above the age of 15 as i believe it should have a 15 certificate. Women are the dominant sex in this film showing strong maternal love through determination for the mum to find her little girl and the girl to discover what happened to her and where she came from.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I think my thriller would be a t.v movie rather than mainstream cinema. This is because it has a complex story line which some would find hard to follow. It would not appeal to a wide audience as people might not understand what the film represents. However it does deal with normal issues in an extreme case, for example a mother on a frantic search for a missing daughter, and wanting revenge on whoever took her. I think it will make more money through dvd release rather than cinema release.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

My thriller is aimed at an audience aged 15 and above. It deals with teenage issues with the girl not knowing her identity or her family, the only thing she has of her mum is short flashbacks of her as a baby, she is isolated. It appeals to an older audience as it deals with parental issues such as losing a child and not knowing what has happened. However it appeals mostly to young mum's as the main character is a young mum.

How did you attract your audience?

I wanted to use characters that my audience could relate, this is why i chose to have a young adult and teenager in the opening sequence, it is every mothers worst nightmare to loose a child, not knowing where they are or what has happened to them. My shots demonstrate a little girl playing quite happily by herself, although she does not appear to be playing by herself, this follows a supernatural theme, which is what the audience hope to see.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product?

To film my opening sequence i was given a camcorder and tripod; fortunately i had experience from filming a thriller trailer for my gcse's, so it was not alien to me. I also had a chance to play about with shots and how to position the camera and height of the tripod whilst doing my prelim task, so i was ready to film my opening. This is also true for the program that i used to edit in, Final cut pro, however i did need to play with some shots to jog my memory on how to use it, adding in effects, cutting shots, separating the sound from the shot etc. To do my text I used a program called motion, which i had never used before. Again I had to play around with fonts, colours, motions and effects to find which ones i wanted to use. I got my music from a cd, i learned how to put my music onto final cut pro from my cd, i done this successfully, although this process was new to me.

Looking back to your preliminary task, what do you feel that you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

I now have much more knowledge about filming and editing. I realised that it is necessary to take lots of different shots at different angles, tilts and distances to determine which one looks best, also because even if you don't use the shots, the option is there. I think maybe i could have used more obvious thriller conventions, however the emphasizes on my thriller is the supernatural side, i believe if i had killings and blood it boarder lines a horror. I like the fast pace editing as it grips the audience more than a slow pace, it is more exciting. This is also why i chose to use an upbeat soundtrack,it matches the pace of the shots, it also builds to feeling of frustration, as the opening comes to an end the story line is not very clear, this should make my audience want to keep watching to find out what happens and who each character is. I got this inspiration from the film fight club, Tyler is a mystery and the whole film leads to a climax at the end when we discover what is really happening.

What is the story line of your thriller?  

My thriller opening is about a little girl who has an 'imaginary friend'. This little girl dissapears, no one knows where she is or what has happened to her, even if she is still alive. The martial arts girl in the opening has been hired to find this girl, she will later discover that the same thing happened to her when she was young, it then turns into a search for her own family, as well as the little girl. the twist is that both girls are living with a family that don't exist.

Did you receive any problems whilst filming?

I had a problem whilst filming the opening because I was supposed to have two little girls, however they both fell ill at different times and I had trouble trying to get them together. In the end I had to make do with the footage I had, this meant I had to demonstrate the little girl was playing with someone who was not there.

What was your audience response?

I got a mixture of feelings from my audience, both negative and positive. Some said it was intriguing, whilst others found it confusing and hard to follow. Overall people said they would watch the film to find out what happens and who the little girl, and the martial arts person are and how they are related. From a media point of view the audience noticed typical convention of a thriller such as the bright purples and pinks related to the little girl, demonstrating youth and innocence. Contrasted against the dullness of the stables, and the black and white shots of the older person doing karate. Overall my thriller opening sequence received a positive response.   

Screen play

Shot one

Interior- Non diegetic music (soundtrack of classic euphoria, set in stone). Mid, wide shot of person starting a karate kata in an empty hall (black and white shot). Straight cut to 1 second close up shot of little girls face, diegetic sounds of laughing. Cross fade back to kata, straight cut to close up of little girls face, diegetic sounds of laughing, cross fade to kata. 6 seconds.

Shot two

Interior- Person is in a hall doing the karate kata (black and white shot), mid, wide shot, cut to long shot. Fades to high angle shot of little girl, fade back to long dolly shot where person doing kata is looking straight into camera (black and white shot). 7 seconds.

Shot three

Exterior- Straight cut to high angle establishing shot of little girl running around a yard at the stables, playing. 5 second shot. 

Shot four

Interior- Fade to person doing kata, tilted angle, mid, wide shot (black and white shot). 2 seconds.

Shot five

Exterior- Straight cut to over the shoulder shot of little girl, 2 seconds. Straight cut to long shot of person doing kata, (black and white shot). 4 seconds. 

Shot six

Exterior- Straight cut to low angle long shot of little girl running in a straight line. 2 seconds.  

Shot seven

Interior- Jump cut to Long shot of person doing kata, (black and white shot) 3 seconds, straight cut to low angle, long shot of little girl running in a straight line, 2 seconds.  

Shot eight

Interior- Jump cut to mid shot of person doing kata, Straight cut to high angle shot of person doing kata, (black and white shots) 4 seconds.

Shot nine

Interior- Straight cut to high angle, tracking shot of kata (black and white shot), jump cut to eye level long shot of little girl running around, straight cut to high angle tracking shot of person doing kata (black and white shot), straight cut to high angle long shot of little girl running around picking things up from the floor. 4 seconds.

Shot 10

Interior- Jump cut to eye level long shot of kata (black and white shot), jump cut to high angle tracking of little girl on scooter. 6 seconds

Shot 11

Interior- Fade to eye level long shot of person doing kata (black and white shot). 3 seconds.

Shot 12

Interior- Straight cut to mid, eye level shot of girl grooming her horse, little girl runs up and taps her on the arm, 3 seconds.

Shot 13 

Interior- Fade to eye level mid shot of person doing kata (black and white shot), jump cut to close up of older girls face, low angle, 1 second. Jump cut back to person doing kata, angled long shot, (black and white) 7 seconds.

Shot 14

Exterior- Long shot of 2 girls walking across the yard, older girl holds little girls hand, 3 seconds.

Shot 15

Exterior- Straight cut to eye level mid shot of little girl grooming a horse, and then reaching for a brush. 4 seconds.

Shot 16

Interior- Jump cut to long shot of person doing kata (black and white shot), jump cut to 1 second long shot of little girl grooming a horse, jump cut to 1 second long shot of kata (black and white shot). Jump cut to 1 second long shot of little girl holding out a grooming brush and dropping it, jump cut to 2 second long shot of person doing kata (black and white shot), jump cut to split second shot of extreme close up of grooming brush, straight cut to 1 seconds long shot of person doing kata (black and white) 6 seconds.

Shot 17

Exterior- Straight cut to split second extreme close up shot of grooming brush, straight cut to mid shot of little girl dropping grooming brush, straight cut to extreme close up of grooming brush. 3 seconds.  

Shot 18

Exterior- Straight cut to long shot of little girl on swing 1 second.

Shot 19

Exterior- Straight cut to long shot of little girl pushing roundabout, fades to close up of little girl pushing roundabout, 6 seconds.

Shot 20

Exterior- Straight cut to long shot of little girl being pushed on the swing. 5 seconds.

Shot 21

Exterior- Fades to high angle tracking shot of little girl on scooter. 1 second. 

Shot 22

Interior- Straight cut to extreme close up of persons eyes (black and white shot), 1 second. Jump cut to close up of little girls face, diegetic sounds of laughter, 1 second.

Shot 23

Exterior- Straight cut to long shot of little girl pushing an empty swing, 5 seconds.

Shot 24

Interior- Fades to long, eye level shot of person doing kata, (black and white shot) 3 seconds. 

Shot 25

1 second black shot, then title appears, non diegetic music fades.

Prelim task