Research - Lighting

Zoe's Thriller Openings

Mise en Scene
Editing
Camera work
Sound
Key words

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

• The lighting is very low key which already suggests that there's a presence of a villain character.
• The non-diegetic music seems subtle and quiet during the set up, which adds to the uncomfortable atmosphere.
• The extreme close up of the male opening the package straight away creates enigma, as the audience feel his eagerness to know what's inside.
• The close up of his face shows us that he's old, and allows us to view his facial expression which looks very serious and concerned.
• His costume consists of a very stereotypical elderly outfit, he's wearing a cardigan, tie and glasses, which emphasises his old age.
• The close up of the plant suggests to the audience that it's important, and the way the camera moves up it, emphasises the careful observation the man is making.
• The long shot of him sitting at his desk, allows the audience to see that he's alone, making the setting seem instantly more sinister and creepy.
• The very dim light that's coming through the window throws a silhouette around the man, making him seem ghostly and mysterious.
• The size of his desk also suggests power, authority and high status.
• As the camera zooms out, more of the setting is revealed, which amplifies how alone he is, and the way he becomes smaller as the camera zooms out, he cries. This establishes how weak he's appearing.

• The non-diegetic music also gets louder when he cries, which emphasises his sadness and also makes a build up.
•   The mid shot of the female antagonist walking creates mystery as the camera follows her from behind, making it seem like she's up to something
• Also, the female antagonist challenges femininity, as she doesn't appear to be wearing a very feminine costume. Her costume is plain and black, which has connotations of evil and darkness. She also has her hood up which suggests she doesn't want to be seen. Stereotypically, people with their hoods up are usually seen as thugs, which definitely challenges femininity.
• There's a significant change in lighting as the light becomes slightly brighter, conveying that she's important.
• She's also positioned in the middle of the frame, which emphasises how she's walking completely alone.
• Her body language is quite stiff and tense. Her head remains bowed as she walks, which conveys that she doesn't want anyone seeing her face.
  
• The non-diegetic music becomes higher in pitch when we are introduced to the female antagonist, which adds to the tension and enigma.
• We are given a close up side view of her face, but still haven't seen her face properly. This creates mystery and also shows how she doesn't want to talk to anyone by the pace of her walking and the menacing music that mimics it.
  
• The close up of her face in amongst a line of other people allows the audience to see that she's wearing a black mask, this increases the enigma, and makes the audience eager to know what she looks like.
• The fact that her face has remain hidden, makes her seem shady and mysterious.
  

Shutter Island 

• The first shot is very misty and white, which creates a ghostly and deathly atmosphere.
• The iconography of metal and chains hanging down have connotations of torture, prisoners and  danger.
• The male character appears to be wearing a formal costume which suggests he's powerful and has authority.
• The close up of him walking out onto the deck allows the audience to see his serious and concerned looking facial expression, which creates enigma as we don't yet know where the ship is going.

• The weather seems quite dull and moody, which could act as pathetic fallacy to emphasise the tense atmosphere. 
• The flashback he has contrasts with the current scene as the lighting becomes immediately brighter as he talks about the girl which shows how happy he was back then, but now everything is gloomy and dull which establishes the change in time.
• The extreme long shot of the island looks sinister and dangerous due to the way the non-diegetic music becomes deeper and more menacing. The long shot also allows us to see how big the island is, which makes it seem intimidating.
• The island is also surrounded by lots of dark clouds, which makes it seem evil and unsafe. This adds to the enigma, as we want to know why the island is presented as unsettling.
  

• As the boat approaches the dock, the non-diegetic music repeats the same deep notes to signify the danger of the island.
• The long shot makes the dock seem deserted and bare.
• The camera slowly zooms into the dock, which allows us to see the men in black costumes patrolling around in an intimidating way.
• The use of black costumes suggests that these men are the male protagonists due to the evil connotations of the colour black.
• The close up of the police badge creates enigma as it suggests they have come to investigate something, and there's been no talk about what it is that they have come to investigate.
• The two male protagonists holding guns portrays a threatening vibe to the audience. Gun's are a stereotypical prop included in a Thriller. Their facial expressions look serious and unhappy, which adds to the suspense.
  

21 Grams

• The first mid shot shows a women sleeping and a man creepily watching her - this straight away create enigma due to the absence of any non-diegetic or diegetic sound, so it causes the audience to feel tense already due to the silence of the scene, and it makes us wonder what the man is going to do.
• His facial expression also looks quite worried and distressed, suggesting that something bad has happened. He's also hunched into a tight ball, which conveys that he's in deep thought and is bothered by something.
• The way the women is lying also makes her seem vulnerable and innocent.

• The over the shoulder shot of the female antagonist sat on the chair creates enigma due to what she's talking about - the audience become eager to know the context behind her dialogue.
• Her costume is very feminine, the skirt and boots emphasise her femininity.
• The long shot of the two males sat opposite each other at a table creates tension, as the camera shakes slightly whilst filming, which suggests that there's something dodgy about these two characters.
• The long shot allows us to observe the setting around them, which looks quite plain. They are also alone, which generates tension because anything could happen.
• The younger male's costume is very informal and casual. His hat makes him look thuggish, and the colour red has connotations of warning and danger, which could maybe suggest he isn't a very good person.
• Whereas the older male's costume is more formal, suggesting he is more powerful and has a high status than the younger male.

• The close up, over the shoulder shot, shows the older male looking quite intimidating by standing over the younger male. This creates tension as his facial expression is fairly menacing.
• He also doesn't break eye contact, which shows how serious he is.
• The extreme close up of the older male looking angry at the younger male adds to the suspense because of how close their faces are.
• The younger male continues to face downwards whilst the older male looks right into his face - this demonstrates the difference in power between them, as the older male appears to be the dominant speaker.

• The flurry of  black birds at the end of the sequence creates tension due to the low key lighting which causes the birds to be silhouetted, which makes everything seem sinister and unsettling.
• The non-diegetic music also begins to play at the end of the sequence which conveys that something is going to happen. 

Collateral

• The first shot is a mid shot of a male walking towards the camera, the use of focus pull means that the camera is focused on his face and not on the other people around him. This suggests that he's an important character.
• His costume consists of a grey suit and black shades. The suit conveys power and authority, and the shades make him look mysterious and suspicious. His costume makes him look like a stereotypical spy or villain.
• His facial expression remains stern and emotionless as he makes his way through the crowd of people, this creates enigma as we become eager to know what he's so serious about.

• The mid shot of a different male suggests that these two characters are going to come into contact due to the same effect being used - the focus pull singles him out from everyone else.
• His costume also consists of a suit, which again suggests authority and high status.
• The slow motion effect used when the close up of the male with shades is walking creates tension as it suggests something is about to happen, it also makes it more dramatic.
• The close up of them bumping into each other creates tension, and the quick cut to the bag falling on the floor, emphasises how sudden and quick it was.
• The shot reverse shot is swift and quick as they talk, which generates suspension.
• The close up used when they are talking allows the audience to see their facial expressions which seem to be quite serious and slightly irritated, which again creates tension as their seems to be some tension between them.

• The shaking of the camera as they pick up their bags creates a chaotic atmosphere
• Tilt up as the bags are picked up allows the audience to observe that they've picked up the wrong bags, which creates chaos and drama.
• The close up, over the shoulder shot of the male with shades walking suggests that he's up to something as the camera peers over his shoulder, it makes him seem suspicious.
• The non-diegetic music is dramatic and makes the sequence sound action-packed and mysterious.
• As the black male gets in the car, he chucks in a bag, and focus pull is used to focus on the bag, and then focus on the male when he gets in, this suggests that he bag is important/contains something important.
• His costume is very informal and low status compared to the previous men in suits, as he is wearing a brown hoodie and a plain top, making him seem like a normal, average looking person.
• The faster paced cuts as he checks the lights on his car creates excitement as it causes a build up to something.

• The non-diegetic and diegetic sound stops as he shuts the car door, this suggests that he's deep in thought, but also emphasises how chaotic the outside surroundings are.
• The extreme close up of his face after he shuts the door also suggests he's in deep though as his facial expression looks slightly strained and concentrated.
• The extreme close ups of the items he takes out of his bag suggests they are significant and are important to him.

Drive

• The panning of the camera around the room in the first shot of the set up, reveals the setting which seems quite modern. It also creates a build up for the character being revealed
• The tilt up the character allows the audience to see his costume, which looks smart and sophisticated, which gives the character power.
• The non-diegetic sound thunders very subtlety in the back ground, which creates a very mysterious atmosphere, and adds tension.
• The man's face reflected in the window causes his face to become slightly distorted and not clearly visible, which is an attempt to make him seem mysterious.

• The lighting is quite low key, which makes the room seem quite dim and dull.
• The pan round to the bag suggests that the bag is important and creates enigma as we wonder what's inside.
• A bit of light seems to be thrown over the bag, which also suggests it's significance.
• The slow zoom in to the window creates tension and suspense.
• The low angle shot of the male protagonist driving the car, amplifies his power due to the way the audience are put into a lower position than him, which then makes him seem bigger and more intimidating.
• The non-diegetic music becomes louder as he sees the car, which suggests the car is important. Another beat is added to the non-diegetic music, which conveys that something is about to happen.
• The birds eye view of the city shows how he is travelling, and also makes it seem dramatic due to the diegetic sound of police sirens, which connotes chaos and crime - appealing to the Thriller genre.

• The focus pull as he looks out the car window at the two male antagonists, suggests that those two men are important, and also creates tension as their costumes appear to be mostly black which has connotations of evil and darkness.
• Their faces are hidden by masks which creates the stereotypical criminal look, so it's obvious they are about to commit a crime.
• The close up of the male antagonist wrapping the watch around the steering wheel, allows the audience to see that part of his costume are brown leather driving gloves, which again, makes him seem sophisticated and of a high status.
• The diegetic sound of alarms signals danger and creates tension.
• The amount of cuts increase as the two male protagonists wait for the other male to exit the robbery. This quickens the pace and increases the tension as the diegetic sound of police sirens gets louder, which illustrates how they are running out of time.
• The amount of cuts then decrease to maximise the tension when they are hiding from the police.



Jess' Thriller Openings

The Usual Suspects

In the opening of 'The Usual Suspects' there are many enigma codes that connote the thriller genre, a close up of a dead body is one example that is used in this opening.

 Dark, or low-key lighting is used to portray the idea of mystery and creates an eerie atmosphere, there is a small bit of light that is provided by a fire which adds to the eeriness of the scene.

 The costumes are all black and dark colours which match the lighting in the scene and further connote an eerie and mysterious atmosphere.

 At the start of the opening there is a man sitting on the floor of what seems to be an old warehouse, he lights a bit of paper and drops it on the floor which then starts a bigger fire, the audience then labels this man as a potential antagonist.

 However, because the man is sitting on floor and there is a slight high angle shot of him, it suggest he is actually in a position of weakness and is a potential victim of something.

Another man is standing at the top of a set of stairs at the warehouse and urinated on the fire that the other man started and put it out.

The medium shot and tight framing of the second man cuts off his head so the audience is unable to see his identity, because of this the audience then puts this man in the role of antagonist and this also emphasises the idea of mystery.

The use of diegetic sound adds to the enigma of the thriller genre, police sirens and gun shots are used as they are stereotypical expectations of a thriller.

 Non-diegetic, creepy, music is played throughout the opening and gets louder to match the action unfolding, which further creates an eerie atmosphere and this is another enigma code of the thriller genre.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

The first shot in the opening of 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo' is a close up of a parcel.

The audience is unaware of what is inside the parcel so this creates a mystery, which is a thriller enigma code.

There is a man sitting at a desk, the room is dark and there is only a slight bit of light coming in through the window, a close up of the mans face suggests that he is exposed and perhaps a victim or a protagonist in this film as his identity is not hidden.

Quiet, non-diegetic music is playing while the man is opening the parcel.

In the parcel is a plant of some sort in a frame, this confuses the audience and intrigues them as they know that the frame is significant but not why it is.

The man begins to get upset at what he has opened, there is a zoom shot of the man which reveals the rest of the room where he is sitting.

As the man becomes increasingly upset, the non-diegetic music gets louder to match the mans despair.

There is a close up of a black and white photo of a woman, the audience then start to wonder why this photo is significant, or who the woman in the photo is, if she is alive or if she is dead.

The man from this scene is dressed in a shirt and tie with a woollen jumper over the top, this connotes high status  and the audience assumes this man is quite wealthy.

A big desk and fancy décor around the room where he is sitting emphasises the idea of high class and wealth.

The camera then cuts to a tracking shot of a hooded girl walking along the street, the non-diegetic music from the previous scene is still playing at this point.

The girl is wearing all black, a pair of jeans and a hoody.

This subverts gender stereotypes and the girl is presented as the antagonist as a result of stereotypical costuming.

Also, the girls identity is hidden as there is only one very quick close up of part of her face, this further connotes the idea of this girl being an antagonist and portrays her as a hidden and mysterious character.

Inception

This opening begins with a medium shot of the sea and the diegetic sound of crashing waves which begins to establish a location.

A close up of a man who looks like he has been washed up on the beach suggests to the audience that this man is a potential protagonist as his identity is not hidden and he is in a position of weakness.

There is a shot from the mans point of view of two children playing on the beach, this shot is in slow motion which portrays the man as disorientated and perhaps weak.

Non-diegetic music is playing while the man is on the beach to create a mysterious atmosphere, the audience begin to wonder where this man is and why he is there.

The man is poked in the back by a soldier with a gun, the gun adds to the enigma of the thriller.

the soldier lifts up the man's jacket with his gun and reveals another gun that the man has been carrying with him.

Next there is a long shot of a building, this again creates mystery as the audience are unaware of the significance of the building.

A slow zoom shot takes the audience into a room where a man is sitting with his back to the camera, this portrays him as a potential antagonist.

A soldier or guard enters the room and places a gun and a spinning top on the table next to the man, this are the items that the first man was carrying on him.

The guards bring the first man into this room and sit him down opposite the man who is sitting at the table.

The second man asks "Are you here to kill me?"

This question makes the audience change there mind about the first man and label him now as the antagonist.

The second man picks up the spinning top and spins it, a close up of the spinning top suggests that it is a significant object, but it also creates a sense of mystery as the audience do not know why.

Mystery is also portrayed by the fact that the audience have no idea who either of the men are, why the first one is there or why the guards have captured him.

Zodiac

The first shot of this opening sequence is a pan shot of a city to establish location.

It's set at night time, so the darkness creates a sense of mystery.

As the car is driving through the town there is diegitic music being played on the radio, this is used to perhaps establish the era in which the film is set.

A tracking/POV shot reveals someone driving through a town where there are fireworks going off, the fireworks portray the evening as important or significant in someway.

The car stops outside a house and a boy approaches the car, there is a medium shot of him where his entire face is visible, he is presented as being is a position of weakness.

The camera then reveals the driver, a young female, this subverts gender stereotypes and when she refuses to let the male drive, she comes across as a dominant character.

However, because her face is also visible it puts her in the same weak position as the male character.

When the two are in the car, they go to a place that is barren, dusty and surrounded by woodland, this location gives the impression of someone being stranded or alone, it also adds to the enigma of the thriller genre.

When the two characters are sat in their car, another car approaches the back of them and a dark figure gets out of the car.

The tight camera framing cuts off the figure's head, hiding their identity, this figure is then portrayed as the antagonist.

As the figure approaches the car with the two people in it, he pulls out a gun and shoots both of them.

Both the gun and the diegetic sound of gun shots are engima codes of the thriller genre.

When the figure walks away from the car after murdering the two people inside it, there is non-diegetic music playing.

However, the music does not match the atmosphere that the on-screen action has created, this confuses and somewhat disorientates the audience.

Towards the end of the opening, there is a medium shot of of a dead body and a policeman who is investigating obscures the shot.

Again, these are engima codes and further connote the thriller genre to the audience.

Face off

A medium shot of a father and son riding a merry go round is obscured by the rest of the merry go round.

The opening is in slow motion to emphasize a sense of mystery but also suggests that this scene is a flashback.

The fact that the scene has a sepia effect on it emphasizes the idea of a flashback.

There is a close up of a sheet being ripped off of an object and reveals a sniper, this is an enigma code and further portrays the thriller genre.

Non-diegetic music matches the action unfolding.(The gun being revealed.)

The man behind the gun is presented as the antagonist purely because of the fact that he is behind a gun.

Because there is a close up of the antagonist's face, it subverts the idea of a stereotypical antagonist and suggests that he has some sort of personal connection to the father and son that were seen in the previous shot.

When the man fire the gun, there is a close up of the bullet leaving the gun the further connote the thriller genre.

The father and his son are both shot by the bullet, there is blood left on the horse and the balloons that the child was holding fly up into the air, this symbolizes the infants injury or even death.

Slow paced non-diegetic music plays alongside the action to emphasize the child's death and the fathers despair.

Preliminary Task Review

During Friday's lesson we were given feedback by the rest of the class on our preliminary task. 

We were told that:

•the camera shots were nicely framed 

•we followed the 180 degree rule 

•there was a good use of props

•good use of OTS shots 

However there were some problems with our prelim task. For example, the sequence that we filmed was supposed to be 1 minute long but ours was only 42 seconds. This is a problem that we will now make sure doesn't happen when we begin our main task. 

Zoe's analysis of the opening from 'The Usual Suspects'

• The close up of lit matches at the beginning of sequence, straight away signifies danger.
• Tracking shot of the fire spreading, again suggests danger and generates anxiety.
• Tilt up to the unknown character urinating on the balcony creates enigma and eagerness to know who they are. The use of restricted narration causes the enigma to be sustained throughout.
• Tilt down from the balcony to follow the journey of the unknown character going down the stairs, with the camera sustaining a long shot, makes it seem like we are spying on him, which boosts the enigma and increases the suspense.
• As the unknown character departs from the stairs, the camera begins to slightly zoom in to his feet walking, which suggests that he is about to do something bad to the other man, as the tension is increased. Shallow depth of field is also used to capture how important this unknown character is.
• A low angle close up is used to establish how the other male antagonist is weaker than the unknown male protagonist as he is looking up at him, which increases the unknown man's power and creates intimidation. This shot is sustained throughout shot reverse shot in order to amplify the difference in power between the two characters.
• The camera also captures the lighter being brought out of his pocket, and then being put back in the pocket, but the unknown character's face remains absent and we don't actually see the cigarette being lit, which suggests the focus is specifically on the iconography of the  lighter, to emphasise that it's an important prop as it produces fire.
• The point of view shot of the other male antagonist at gun point creates tension and anxiety as it seems that the unknown character is pointing the gun at the audience; it's as if we are put into the victim's body. It's a very threatening shot due to the iconography of the gun.
• This shot also allows the audience to see that the unknown male protagonist is wearing a black jacket, which is a stereotypical costume for the villain to wear, as it's considered to be menacing and mysterious.

• The cutaway that's made as the shooting commences allows the audience to observe the setting, which seems to be quite isolated and empty. The cutaway could also be used to emphasise how loud the diegetic sound of the gun shot is, as it seems to echo around the lonely setting.
• Slow motion effect is used to capture the close up of the cigarette being dropped; showing the importance of the cigarette as it kick starts the fire, causing everything to blow up. It creates suspense and shock.
• The close up allows the audience to notice that the unknown character is wearing black leather gloves; suggesting sophistication and power.

• Another tracking shot is used to follow the spread of the fire, which creates the build up to the explosion.
• A low angle shot is used to magnify the hugeness of the explosion. At this point, the non-diegetic music becomes higher in pitch to highlight the climax of the sequence. Whereas throughout the rest of the sequence, the non-diegetic music remained mostly menacing and sinister without too much change.
• The sequence finishes with the diegetic sound of police sirens, which connotes justice and resolution, just before the screen dissolves into another scene - suggesting a flashback.
• The lighting remains as low key throughout in order to establish the Thriller genre, by making the setting gloomy and dull.
• The chronology isn't in the right order, but the effect of opening with a killing scene grabs the audiences attention as we are intrigued by what we see! Straight away tension is created. 

Final Video

The slow motion does not seem to be working on this video. However, we have a file on the college system where the full video is working fine.

Final Touches

We have now finished editing; we added final touches such as a black and white filter, a heartbeat at the beginning of the sequence, menacing music that plays throughout the rest of the sequence, and lastly, we put certain shots in slow motion.
We did all of this to create tension, and an eerie atmosphere.
The slow motion effect was used to emphasise certain actions such as sliding the knife across the table, this made it more engaging and attention grabbing for the audience.
The black and white filter made the sequence more mysterious and it acted as a representation of the genre being crime/thriller.
The non-diegetic music added to the suspension and generated a menacing vibe. We decided to use a heartbeat at the beginning to kick start the rhythm and to instantly grip the audience.