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

I have researched a lot about the forms and conventions of films in the thriller genre (please refer to my blog post Conventions of a thriller genre). I have also watched many and many highly rated thriller films to broaden my knowledge of the genre (Leon the professional, Shutter Island, The silence of the lambs, etc.)

First of all the title of our thriller opening 'Decorum' hints to the audience what the general meaning/morals of the story are. The definition of the word decorum is "behaviour in keeping with good taste and propriety". Now this can be interpreted in many ways in our thriller opening because of its genre (thriller). On one hand it can be interpreted as the murdered kills but he still keeps himself well presented. This is apparent from the Empire magazine starring Jak Main on the front cover. As you can see he is wearing a very formal suit but is covered with blood splatters and holding a knife. Another way it can be interpreted is that he has no sense of morals or self awareness in his behaviour when trying to hunt down the murderer of his parents. This could connote that the different things he does in order to find the killer (ends up being him) are very disturbing and not normal.

Thrillers typically have one main protagonist and one main antagonist. The basis of the story revolves around these two characters. This is apparent in our thriller as we have one main protagonists (myself) and one main antagonist (Jak Main). Doing this our thriller fits with the forms and conventions of the main characters.

Our media product has shots in which conform to the typical locations used in thriller movies. First of all the locked away shed. This is shown throughout the opening in a very dark palette of colours with very dim lighting. Low lit basements and sheds are used to create tension, like in the films Texas chainsaw massacre and mainly The silence of the lambs.

To fit with the conventions of a thriller our cast had to be clothed in normal clothes and be seen doing normal every day things. This makes the thriller seem realistic as they are just general people. Near the end you see myself walking about on the phone. This is to connote that the protagonist is vulnerable. The whole aim of this is to connote to the audience that this is an event that could happen to anyone, even the person watching, therefore making it very tense and scary to watch.

Typically in thriller movies the antagonists despite their problems/wrongdoings, usually live in a secluded location. This is shown in our thriller as Jak Main is in his shed, with no other visible home for him show in  the introduction. This connotes that the shed is where Jak's character does all the killing (supporting that with the blood stained knife on the shelf). The darkness of being in the shed in the thriller opening creates suspense as you can't see fully inside it, leaving it to the audiences imagination what is there.

Our film challenges the convention that antagonists usually have a hidden identity until later on in the film. Our film takes an approach from more an antagonists point of view, like the film Shutter Island.

Props are typically used in thriller films to add to tension and to build suspense. Weapons such as guns, knives and explosives a generally used a lot in Thriller films, however household items such as cutlery, glass bottles and other sharp objects can be used to make the person look desperate. In the first minute of the introduction of the thriller the audience have already seen a variety of knives, a handgun, pair of cutters, and various utensils for breaking into places such as screwdrivers. This connotes that the person in the opening is violent and willing to kill someone (blood on knife) therefore building suspense as the audience can see he is well equipped for what hes eventually going to be doing later on in the film.

Mise-on-scene is obsessed over in the thriller genre. It is designed to target your subconscious, making you think about whats going on around what your primarily focusing on (e.g. if someone’s in the background in the dark, only slightly visible.) In our thriller opening there is constantly things to be focusing on, the BBC news screen, the board with all the pictures of different suspects/murder victims?,  consequently making the viewer on edge and scared for whats going to happen next.

Added to that the scene where I am held gun point by Jak takes place in an empty tunnel. This represents there is little/no escape, no weapons, no where to hide. This fits the conventions of a thriller as the location where the action takes place is somewhere where you would be most vulnerable, alone away from any form of human interaction.

Lighting is a big part of mise-en-scene as it can connote subliminal messages to the audience. Lighting in thrillers is mainly low key which is used to create shadows on faces, bodies and props. Low key lighting is normally used during more sinister, scary scenes to emphasize the suspense and tension. It helps provide detail, making the viewer unsettled as they can’t see what’s going to happen until it’s too late. Colour is a direct link to emotions, therefore a lot of dark greys and blacks would go with uncertainty and confusion.

Editing is vital in a Thriller because it is used to create a tense and suspenseful atmosphere. This is achieved through fast cuts, changing angles and possibly motion blur to disorient the audience. Jump cuts are mostly used during thriller films, these are used to give information to the audience that they might need in order to understand a part of the film. Jump cuts can completely change the scene, the faster the jump cuts the more tension created within the film. A quick succession of short clips will disorient and audience. This is because the fast pacing makes the audience lose focus on everything which is happening in the scene. Our thriller uses all these techniques to disorient the viewer, leaving them in a sense that they want events not to happen in the film which will happen and they are left with a feeling of no control on whats going to happen.

We challenged the thriller genre by having no dialogue in our opening. This creates suspense and tension as there is mystery behind whats going on. Not giving the audience too much information leaves them to use their imagination, therefore usually making the scene scarier as they would assume generally worst case scenarios for the characters. 
 
Finally we used a variety of camera shots to entice the viewer and get them immersed in whats happening in the film. For example at the end of the opening you see a first person shot of myself in a gun point situation. This is very terrifying for most viewers as I have been shown as vulnerable throughout the opening. This doesn't challenge the forms of conventions of a thriller, however first person, or point of view shots are rarely used in thriller films.