Narrative Structures

Claude Levi-Strauss

Levi-Strauss (left) was an anthropologist who studied how societies functioned. He argued that ‘primitive’ societies and ‘advanced’ societies shared similarities. He suggested that opposing pairs provide motivation for the story to develop. The way in which the characters attempt to resolve these oppositions creates a narrative. Levi-Strauss named these pairs ‘Binary Opposites’

Vladimir Propp

Propp (right) studied media texts and productions and developed a theory that suggested that whatever the surface differences between stories, they all contained the same internal structure in which there were 8 different character types in narratives. These are: 

1. The villain (struggles against the hero) 
2. The hero (seeks something) 
3. The donor (prepares the hero) 
4. The helper (help the hero along in the story) 
5. The princess (reward for the hero) 
6. Her father (who rewards the hero or usually dies during or before the story) 
7. The dispatcher (character who sends the hero off) 
8. The false hero 

Roland Barthes

Barthes (right) came up with a theory that suggests that any text portrays a mystery to make the audience question something about the narrative and intrigue the audience to draw them in. For instance, a crime thriller will often not reveal the full motivation of the crime until the end of the story, which poses the question "Why was the crime committed?"

Preliminary Task

NOTE: All of the information below is available in annotation form in the video itself, and this post will effectively be recycled for the last question of our evaluations.

From the preliminary task, i can see where we can improve with our camera skills. It has also made me more familiar with using the camera, and the tripod, so that i am more confident when filming. In the first scene of the task, we realised when editing, that the framing was off, and the character's head was out of the frame. When we begin to film our thriller opening, we know that we need to get the framing correct to avoid this problem.We also had the problem that background noise, but resolved it by editing the sound to fade in. This helped us to become more confident editing the sequence, however, we still need to explore other features when editing.

(Jack) My Film Pitch: System Crash

The film is set in the near future; cybernetics have advanced to a stage at which it is now possible to augment humans with cybernetic parts to increase their performance - and a secret government technology has been produced which allows human brains to exist in completely robotic android-like bodies known as "Shells".

The Omega Crime Unit, a cyber-crime team who silently take out cyber-terrorist threats and deal with serious risks to national security is chasing a terrorist group who are trying to break into a government facility to obtain information on their security systems – and it seems as though they are preparing for a system-wide takedown of the government network to digitally paralyse them for a few days. The terrorists escape with the data on the government firewalls, and the team re-convene to discuss a new strategy.


Tracing crimes of robbery, hacking and the occasional murder back to a single point in the Capital City (using a CSI-style montage investigation sequence), the crime team find a single member of the terrorist group in the middle of a busy street and silently capture him – only to find that the terrorist is, in fact, an android, who subsequently self-destructs, preventing them from gaining any information from it. They do, however, find traces of a signature code of the terrorist group attempting to hack into a server from a warehouse in another location – and most of the team leaves to go and chase the signal.


Meanwhile, the main character, an augmented cyber-human, smells a rat and stays behind – and as he examines the android's parts closer, he spots a numerical ID code that matches that of one of the government's own android IDs. He goes to the office of the head of the crime unit, and finds him suspiciously absent – and upon looking through his computer files, finds traces of hacking activity. He puts two and two together and realises that the head of the crime team was the main villain all along. Going down to the basement after seeing a new hacking signal on the monitor, he finds the head of the crime unit (another cybernetically augmented human) waiting for him – who goes on to explain his entire evil plan to overthrow the government and blow up the warehouse that the rest of the team are currently inside.


The main character has thirty minutes to defeat/kill the head of the crime team and halt the bomb to save the rest of his team – and after an epic battle with laser swords and some awesome acrobatics, he does so with a single second to spare.


The movie ends with the main character being given an award for his success, and he is appointed as the new head of the crime team. Cue fade out and credits. ^_^


- Jack

Target Audience Research

Target Audience of Individual Films - Harry Brown

Harry Brown is a British Crime-Thriller Film  directed by Daniel Barber .  The casts consist of slightly older actors and actresses for example Michael Caine who plays the character Harry Brown , Emily Mortimer and David Bradley. The use of an older casts  tells us that the film isn't targeted at younger audience but is aimed at older audience . The film contains a lot of violence and strong language , drug use and sexual content and  the film is obviously  rated 18 ; So there's another reason why the film isn't targeted at a younger audience . I think the film has a primary target audience of Age 18-29 .

Harry Brown is a British film and the  film has a well known cast especially Ben Drew who plays as Noel Winters . Ben Drew is a music artist and having him in the film is also a huge advantage as he will attract the younger audience ,  his fans and there would be a lot of fan base audience wanting to watch him . Also the location of where the film is shot is important , the director has decided to shot this film in south London and because of this it will attract a lot of people who live in London to watch this film and the representation of youth in the film means the teenagers would be interested in watching this film .

 In the data below you can see that there's a range of audience group who saw the film gave it a high rating. This Film has managed to hit every target audience group and made it a success.

Votes	Average
Males	35107	7.3
Females	2787	7.2
Aged under 18	345	7.8
Males under 18	313	7.8
Females under 18	32	7.6
Aged 18-29	21205	7.3
Males Aged 18-29	19658	7.3
Females Aged 18-29	1547	7.3
Aged 30-44	13229	7.2
Males Aged 30-44	12376	7.2
Females Aged 30-44	853	7.0
Aged 45+	2889	7.2
Males Aged 45+	2601	7.2
Females Aged 45+	288	7.5
IMDb users	44759	7.3

Character types withing thrillers and micro elements used in their portryal.

Character Types - The Villain 

There are usually one villain in a thriller film that is introduced as an antagonist . This character can be very evil and always seem to be causing trouble and involved in crime  . This character type could seem genuine, innocent but deep within there is a monster inside . This character type is usually negative towards other characters and trying to hurt anyone that gets in their way of achieving their goals .  The villain is normally seeking revenge or trying to steal some money etc  . However we do get some sympathetic villain for example In the Film 'Panic Room' there are 3 villains who break in some one's house to get hold of a large amount of money that is hidden somewhere in the house . One of the villain doesn't want to hurt the people in the house , he just wants to get the money and get out . Here is scene from 'Panic Room' where one of the villain is trying to help the girl by giving her the injecting her with her medicine .

Opening Scene Analysis: Deja Vu (Editing)

The opening credits stand out as they seem quite formal (left) and sound has been added as the credits appear, to make them more dramatic.

The first scene has been slowed down and then paused, as if they were being watched on a video (left), which relates to the narrative. It then cuts to a tracking shot of a bus moving, and time compression is used to jump to the characters getting off the bus. A match cut a is then used showing more buses and other characters exiting them to add to the continuity of the setting (right).

Various match cuts are then used to show other activities that are happening in the same setting, to begin to construct a narrative of the film. The title is then shown (left - 01:15 minutes in). Match cuts are shown again, much like before, and two scenes have been slowed down again.


A reaction shot is then shown of the captain of the boat looking at something, as the focus of the scene changes to the reflection on the glass to the bridge behind the camera (right).

Sub-genres of Thriller Films

Sub Genres of Thriller Films on Prezi

A rough sketch of our storyboard for the preliminary task. You can see the character walking towards the door, opening the door and walking towards the other character sitting down.

Opening Sequence of The Da Vinci Code

The Da Vinci Code starts with a shot what looks like a blueish UV light shining on paintings; this is foreshadowing for some of the themes and scenes that occur later on in the movie – and this is followed by close-ups and POV shots of a man running through an art gallery. The paintings are filmed quite interestingly; it appears as though the people in the paintings are watching the man running as he dashes past them, and as the camera tracks him, we are shown out-of-focus glimpses of his chaser.

The opening to The Da Vinci Code features extremely dark and low-key lighting, keeping the scene deliberately ambiguous and mysterious; through the dim light, we are shown a man running through what looks like an art gallery or museum, attempting to evade a monk-like figure who follows behind him. We aren't shown much of the monk; he follows at a distance, always in the edges of long shots, and almost as soon as we see him, the camera cuts away to another shot of the man running. These rapid cuts create a sense of paranoia; it's assumed that if the monk catches the man, then he will kill him – but in actuality, his intentions are more enigmatic than just murder, as what he seeks from the man is information.

The preservation of ambiguity is extremely important in this scene; we're not even actually shown the monk's face until he traps the man by holding him at gunpoint, and the camera had previously not stayed on him for all that great a length of time before cutting away. The scene remains extremely claustrophobic despite the relative largeness of the art gallery; it's shown that the man who is attempting to escape has nowhere to go but in a single direction – and when it becomes unfeasible to continue in that direction, he is basically at the monk's mercy. This creates a massive sense of tension, as the audience is prompted to be somewhat fearful for the safety of the running man – as well as setting up the tone and scenario for the rest of the movie.


- Jack

Silence of the Lambs Opening Sequence Analysis

Silence of the Lambs begins in the woods; the scene is set as a mysterious and foreboding forest, complete with dead trees, fallen leaves and a shadowy, steel-grey blanket of misty fog that almost completely obscures all vision past a few metres. We are shown Clarice running in the forest, and this instant brings up assumptions and connotations that she might be being chased; she appears breathless and sweaty, and the way that the camera often pans behind her implies that she is being followed by someone who we can't see. Side-on tracking shots from in the trees also help to accentuate this; it initially appears that Clarice is being watched – and as someone who hadn't seen the film previously, I was fully expecting a psychotic murder to jump out of the trees and maim her (and this was, of course, enhanced by the scene's spooky, ominous music).

However, this proves not to be case – although the scene as a whole does create a building sense of tension and worry; it's essentially a bait-and-switch designed to keep the audience on the edges of their seats, and generates an already thrilling atmosphere even at the very start of the film. This is, in effect, foreshadowing for the themes presented in the rest of the movie; the fact that that we are led to believe that Clarice is being pursued by a murderer when in actuality she's only doing a simple training exercise is a statement that what we expect from a situation isn't necessarily congruent with the reality of that situation. Hannibal “The Cannibal” Lector is, for example, initially portrayed as a complete monster who made a name for himself by murdering and eating people, and as a result, we expect him to be an absolute vicious psycho – though in reality, he's actually quite a polite, calm and well-spoken person who helps Clarice solve a murder case.

This kind of character stereotyping could, of course, work the other way; talking to Lector, you wouldn't necessarily think that he's a murderer who'd like to eat your liver “with some farver beans and a nice cianti” - in fact, he comes over as quite nice. Silence of the Lambs' opening sequence, then, cleverly encapsulates the film's running theme that things aren't always what they initially seem – and it does so suitably thrillingly.


- Jack

Thriller Sub Genres

Action Thriller
Action Thriller is one of the main sub genres of thriller . Action thriller is portrayed differently as any other thrillers with its faced paced shots , car chase , explosions and a lot of physical violence . A good example of an action thriller would be 'The A-Team' . In the Trailer of the film , you can see a lot of fast paced shots and explosives and effects that really emphases that the film is an Action Thriller and it gives the audience the instant idea that it's an action thriller film.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM0ypzvuphg

Psychological Thriller 
This type of thriller focuses more on the characters and plays with the characters state of mind and their emotions rather then their physical side . Psychological thrillers are more in depth with the story line and a bit more complex . This type of thriller really gets the audience on the edge of their seats and grabs their attention ,this is one of the main reason that a lot of people go to see a psychological thriller . Some of the good example's of psychological thrillers are Seven , Fight Club and The experiment .

Crime Thriller
This genre identifies the accounts of a crime that has taken place or about to take place . Crime thrillers are different to just crime films as they follow the accounts of the criminal rather than the hero. Crime thrillers are full of suspense rather than just action . Crime Thrillers plays with the audiences emotions and their own fears so the crime thrillers also has a large psychological side to them . An example of a good crime thriller would be Silence of the Lambs .

Romantic/Erotic Thriller 
 Romantic Thriller is usually focused on two people normally a couple or two close friends.  Romantic Thriller has that suspense , anxiety and suspense . A good example of Romantic Thriller is Mr & Mrs Jones .

Se7en Opening Analysis

In the opening of Se7en, imagery is used to portray the atmosphere, narrative and genre of the film; the opening credits, for example, are edited together in a deliberately juddery and mismatched-looking fashion, and is littered with visible and audible glitches and distortion. It shows a montage of close-up shots of a person stitching together a scrapbook of pictures, cutting between shots and skipping time abruptly to make the scene appear disjointed.

I personally think that this is a clever metaphor for the mind of the criminal killer; warped and damaged, (like the camera shots and sound) though cleverly calculated and strung together (like the organised scrapbook) – and in a sense, this provides something of a base for the plot of the rest of the film. It's also worth noting that the person organising the scrapbook is blotting certain parts of the texts and pictures out entirely; pictures of people's faces, for example, and words like “homosexuality”. The choice of words is extremely important; there is a quick close-up of the words “in God we trust” written on a bank-note, and because of the fact that we already know that the film's title refers to the seven deadly sins, the reference to religion is important in establishing the themes of the film.

From the introduction, we can also tell that the person constructing the file is a criminal as opposed to an investigator; he crosses out pictures and people's faces, and doesn't use professional or very precise or clean methods of handling the evidence that he is collecting – and the fact that he is seen slicing skin off the ends of his fingers implies that he wishes to evade detection, and is attempting to erase fingerprints.

The audio is also extremely important; it is extremely harsh-sounding, with a distinctly incoherent feel and regular buzzes and blips to match the confused, jittering visuals. However, the buzzes and blips eventually turn into a drumbeat – and this, much like the jumpy editing and camera work as mentioned earlier, signifies the thought processes of the criminal himself; the glitch effects are representative of his chaotic and insane thoughts, though the drumbeat symbolises a steady theme and rhythm to his work. It all concludes with a spoken line that starts muffled, though audibly ends with the words “closer to God” - and this links back into the religious themes and motives behind the killings.


- Jack

Themes and Symbols Used in Thriller Films

In thriller films, there are usually similar themes and symbols used. There is typically a crime at the core of the narrative, which is usually shown in the opening scenes. At the crime scene, there are usually symbols that would relates to the narrative, for example, a weapon. This could be subtle or obvious to the viewer. Evidence, such as clothing or forensics, is usually also used to relate back to the criminal or scene. There are usually signs or implications of suffering, with blood, or again, a weapon.

Psychological aspects can also be included in a horror film. Themes such as voyeurism, identity and mirroring can be used to support the psychological aspects of the film. For example, in 'Se7en', Detective Somerset appears to have some OCD traits, which brings up the theme of mental illnesses, which can increase the anxiety in the film as anxiety is a common symptom of some mental illnesses. Usually it is the antagonist that has an mental disorder, but it can sometimes be the protagonist, which is shown in 'Se7en.' 


Symbols can be used at the beginning thrillers to mirror what is to happen later on in the film. For example, the film 'The Minority Report' uses the single eye and it's function of vision as one main symbol used throughout the film. At the beginning, the attempted murderer refers to his glasses: "You know I'm blind without them" which is the first reference to vision right at the beginning of them film. Later on, the protagonist has his eyes replaced to hide his identity from the retinal scanners are everywhere. He becomes blind in one eye when a retinal scanner lifts his bandage before it has completely healed from the replacement operation.

Thriller Sub-Genres

Psychological Thriller: Emphasis on the mind; often confusing, and explores the deeper, more psychologically confusing and/or complex parts of the characterisation and narrative - and they can often be disturbing or frightening because of this. Popular examples include Se7en, Inception, Silence of the Lambs and One Hour Photo.

Political Thriller: In Political Thrillers, the protagonists are usually charged with the task of protecting the government by whom they are employed. Examples of famous films in this sub-genre include State of Play, Notorious and The Interpreter.

Spy Thriller: The main protagonist (or, in fact, protagonists) are spies in some form of secret service - and usually, they are pitted against either a rival government or terrorist group. They tend to involve action and espionage, and often, they employ science-fiction elements to make the plot work. It's notable that the James Bond series is a series of action films as opposed to thrillers - though some good examples of spy thrillers include Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Traitor and Taken, which have a far smaller emphasis on action than a Bond film does.

Techno Thriller: Science-fiction elements are emphasised, with the story based on scenarios or reliant upon science that either doesn't exist in real life or is futuristic in another way; for example, Jurassic Park, The Matrix and Minority Report.

Crime Thriller: The main focus of a Crime Thriller is, as the name of the sub-genre would suggest, on a crime of some kind (and the struggles of the detective team to solve it). The most common crimes include murder and robbery - and some of the most popular Crime Thrillers include Se7en, Silence of the Lambs and Untraceable. If more emphasis is placed upon the criminals or investigators themselves, then there is often overlap with Psychological Thrillers.

Conspiracy Thriller: In which the main character must face an enemy that only they acknowledge the existence of; this is usually some kind of evil organisation with a nasty plot. The Manchurian Candidate, Awake and The Da Vinci Code are all examples of films in this genre.

Erotic Thriller: Not always entirely sexual, though with a heavier emphasis on the more erotic parts of the characters' relationships. Examples include Basic Instinct, Lust and Eyes Wide Shut.

Supernatural Thriller: These occasionally follow a more horror-like structure, and involve ghosts or supernatural phenomena in some way. Essentially, these are thrillers that contain events that can not be explained with logic or science - and they often contain elements of fantasy. Examples include Death Note, Chronicle and What Lies Beneath.

- Jack

Priorities

Jack:

> Complete missing posts by Thursday 6th Dec. 3:15PM
> Pictures and videos must complement every post

Rojan:

> Complete missing posts by Thursday 6th Dec. 3:15PM
> Catch up on preliminary task

Aimee:

> Look at other thriller films on own, e.g. more psychological sub-genres (different)
> Identifying target audience specifically

Group priorities:

> Mood board
> Logo
> Audience Research

Signs and Symbols

Signs, Symbols and Themes in Thrillers

Psychological Elements: One common theme in many thriller films is the emphasis on the psychological aspect of the genre; this could be represented by introspective scenes in which characters are explored deeper and in a more in-depth manner. For example, their possessions, clothing, mannerisms and speech might be focused upon to make them seem more pronounced and prominent, and to give the audience a better, clearer understanding of the characters as a whole. From this, it's sometimes possible to work out their intentions, though thrillers may often attempt to mislead the audience by doing so.

Shot Reverse Shot

According to http://dictionary.reference.com, 'shot reverse shot' is "a shot that views the action from the opposite side of the previous shot, as during a conversation between two actors, giving the effect of looking from one actor to the other."
http://en.wikipedia.org also says that it is "a film technique where one character is shown looking at another character (often off-screen), and then the other character is shown looking back at the first character. Since the characters are shown facing in opposite directions, the viewer assumes that they are looking at each other."

The 180 degree rule is important to keep the viewer focused and avoid confusion when watching. 

The guidelines for the 180 degree rule can be seen to the left. A line of vision must be put in place, which usually runs through the middle shown in the diagram). The camera can only stay on one side of the line once filming has began, because if the camera is on the wrong side of the line, it will appear as if both characters are facing the same direction.

Thriller Demographics/Psychographics Survey

The following survey was sent out to a random sample of volunteering participants. It was designed to better determine our prospective target audiences.

Survey Summary

In one of our surveys (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DXXX9GK), so far 16 participants have answered. 11 females and 5 males have answered in total. There is quite a wide range of ages, but 10 out of the 16 were aged between 16-25. The most popular genre of film turned out to be comedy, followed by romance. However, this may be because the ratio of females who answered the survey to males was considerably higher.

The cast and plot seemed to be the main appealing factor to go see a film, followed by a friend recommending it. Inception seemed to be a popular choice when choosing a favourite thriller film. Another survey was made with questions based around the film Inception (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KQS8XYL) so that we know in detail why Inception was such a popular choice. Also, from some of the answers, many people answered with horror films that had elements of thriller, or vice versa. This suggests that part of the audience think of a typical thriller film having elements of horror included into it.

 The question that we also asked was 'Are you more likely to see a thriller film if it has elements of your favourite genre?' where 14 out of 16 answered yes. This can tell us what elements we may include in our film opening, to appeal to certain audiences.

Research - Interview

Female
Sixth Form student  
Aged between 16-25

What is your favourite genre of film?

Thriller, Horror

What type of sub-genres of thriller do you prefer?

Psychological and supernartural

What was the last film you went to go see?

Paranormal activity 4

Was there any reason you went to go see it?

Came out around halloween and cast from previous films

In the opening, what grabbed you attention?

Went back to the second film

Thriller Audience Profile (Psychographics and Demographics) - Raw Data

Source - http://industry.bfi.org.uk/exitpolls

Raw Data

Ill Manors

Number of people surveyed                   96

Male                                                       56%

Female                                                  44%
 
Over 25                                                 48%

Under 25                                               52%

Baits to audience

The story appealed to me                   44%

Written and directed by

 Ben Drew (Plan B)                              43%

The genre/type of film                          39%

It is a British film                                   28%

The music on the soundtrack              24%

I was asked to come 

along by a friend/partner                     22%

The trailer                                              21%

The advertisement I have seen          20%

The cast in general                              10%

Based on a true story                            7%

The reviews                                            7%

It stars Riz Ahmed                                  6%

The film's poster                                     3%

Other                                                       1%

 

4.3.2.1

Number of people surveyed                130

Male                                                         72

Female                                                    56

Under 25                                                 73

Over 25                                                   55
    

Baits to audience

Because it's directed by 

Noel Clarke                                          47%

The genre/type of film                          38%

The story appealed to me                   32%

Interested by advertising                     28%

Because of the 

London / New York setting                  25%

Because it features Noel Clarke        22%

I like the cast generally                        22%

My friends are talking about it            15%

Because it features Bashy                  13%

Asked to come by friend/partner        12%

It received good reviews                      10%

Because it features Adam Deacon    10%

Because it features Emma Roberts     8%

Other                                                        5%

Because it features Michelle Ryan       5%

Because it features Tamsin Egerton    4%

Se7en Opening sequence Analysis

 Se7en Opening sequence Analysis

In the opening sequence of the film Seven there is a lot of diegetic sound used, for example: when he turns on the tap and his footsteps, which is also a parallel sound. Other forms of diegetic used in the opening sequence such as speech and sound effects (SFX). Sound effects that are used are: police Siren, Megaphone and metronome.

Non diegetic sound is also used such as music. Thrillers are usually recognizable through there theme tunes. The film Seven had a distinctive theme tune, which suggested the film is a physiological-crime thriller due to its intense and creepy tune.

The metronome suggests that the main character has OCD, because he has to have everything perfect before he goes to bed and a constant beat. When the main character started the metronome,  the sound at the background of police sirens , people arguing and dog barking starts to sound louder , this could suggest that the noise of violence helps him to go sleep. 

 

Thriller Questionnaire

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/8CQCBQQ

Opening 5 Minutes: Red Eye

In the opening of red eye, non-diagetic music is used as the production companies names, the director, the protagonist and the antagonist actor's names and the title of the film are shown in text over a black background. Everything but the title is shown in a white text, whereas the title 'Red Eye' is shown in large red characters for it to stand out (right). The credits also seem to be 'flying' away from the screen, and an aeroplane sound can be heard, which relates to the main plot of the film. The music also gets to it's climax when the title is shown.

As the title immediately disappears, we see a close up point of view shots of photographs of a woman who appears to be in her high school years. From this, we get the feeling of voyeurism as it appears as if someone is viewing the images. There is then a jump cut where the shot goes to the cabinet that the photographs are standing on. We see, what appears to be from his posture and items, a man dumping his keys and wallet (left). From this we get the impression that he has just got home and that this is his house. The camera then begins to zoom into the items, with non-diagetic music building the tension, implying that the wallet could relate to later on in the film. As the music comes to a climax, we see another character's hand snatch the wallet, which gives the impression that someone unknown is hidden in the house. It gives the feel of voyeurism again, as well as anxiety. 

We see the wallet again after approximately a minute, as an unknown character is going through it, we learn from when the character goes through it, the owner of the wallet and who appears to be his daughter (shown in the photographs on the cabinet). The character does not seem to be interested in money as the credit cards in the wallet are thrown out of the wallet and into the bin. The close ups of the wallets and the photos in the wallet suggest that the character is more interested in the two characters in the wallet. 
 
About 2 minutes in, men can be seen urgently trying to break open a large delivery crate full of seafood. There seems to be a sense of panic as they open the crate, and are quite aggressive about moving the crate inside. The sense of urgency suggests that a crime is being plotted. 

The close up of another unknown character going through images of what appears to be a hotel and floor plans of what may be the same hotel can be seen. The images all seem to be being sorted on a desk, and the character's hand is going through the floor plans of the hotel (right). This supports the idea that a crime is being plotted. 


The hotel is used later on in the opening. First we see a low angle shot of the hotel (left), which we can relate to the images that were being sorted. As it goes to reception, the receptionist calls the manager of the hotel, a match-cut is used to show the same female character in the wallet (Lisa), in the back of a taxi. This introduces her character a bit more, with the fact that she seems as if she is always busy with work, even though she is away from it. After the phone call, Lisa gets a call from her father, and we see that it is the same character who is also in the wallet and who owns the wallet. Therefore, we know that the hotel, Lisa and her father all play a big part in the plot.

Inception Survey

 

Film Survey 

Gender and Age Demographics

 We can conclude from both charts for the gender of the people surveyed, that because more of the male audience were surveyed, that more males went to see these particular films.

 From the information shown on the right, we can also conclude that the age of the audience from these two films were mainly under 25s. Even though there is not enough data to conclude for every audience, from these two films, we can assume that the main audience for thriller films are male under 25s.

Opening 5 Minutes: Silence of the Lambs

In the opening 5 minutes of 'Silence of the Lambs' (full movie above), we see a tracking shot of the main protagonist (Clarice) as she run through the woods. We get the impression that she is being chased through the woods. This is also supported by point of view shots through the woods. It gives the feeling of voyeurism and that Clarice is being watched, which supports the idea she is trying to get away from something. 

Sound is also used to support the theme of voyeurism when Clarice is running through the woods. The sound of her breathing heavily is exaggerated to reinforce the sense of running in panic, as if she was being chased. The sound of a bird 'squawking' can also be heard. The bird's call also sounds as if it is a bird of prey, which relates to the antagonist: 'Hannibal the Cannibal.' The location also gives a feeling of the unknown, as the woods seem quite misty and mysterious (right)

When Clarice is running, we finally see what appears to be part of an assault course (left). It then becomes apparent that she is not being chased in deserted woods, but instead, training in an assault course. We learn from this that Clarice is quite athletic and willing to push herself. 
We then learn, from another character approaching her, that she has something to do with the FBI, as the character's FBI cap automatically places him. 
 

We also learn more about Clarice's character from how other characters address her. She is referred to be her surname 'Sterling' which seems professional, but also quite masculine. We also see the contrast of the stereotypical male protagonist compared to a woman as the protagonist when Clarice steps into the lift (right), we see that she is surrounded by quite tall, lanky man, while Clarice is significantly shorter and smaller, but also seems to be the most masculine in terms of behaviour and costume.

Limitless Audience

 ‘Limitless’ is a 2011 thriller film, directed by Neil Burger. The film stars Bradley Cooper, Abbie Cornish and Robert De Niro. The main credited actors immediately appeal to ‘The Hangover’ fans because Bradley Cooper starring as the main protagonist, which includes a lot of the older teens. De Niro fans are also included in the target audience, and because he has acted in many films throughout his life, he is well recognised and appeals to audiences that have enjoyed his previous work.

‘Limitless’ is also based on the book ‘The Dark Fields’ by Alan Glynn, therefore, the film appeals also to the readers of the book. Even though the book was published in 2001, it was re-released with the same title: 'Limitless,' to coincide with the film adaption. 

From the theatrical release poster (Right), audiences can see that it is a modern, fast paced film, which draws in audiences that particularly enjoy thriller films that 'keep them on their toes.'

 

Establishing Narrative in the Opening to a Film

Dinner for Schmucks Opening

In the opening scene of 'Dinner for Schmucks,' we see the details of the cast and crew. The production companies are shown first with text over the sequence (right). The main two actors are shown around 30 seconds in, and then the title 'Dinner for Schmucks' 40 seconds in. After the title has been shown, other actors' names are presented.

The song used ('Fool on the Hill' by the Beatles) relates to the character they are introducing in the opening scene (the character seen dressing the mice) as he is portrayed as a 'fool' in the film.The song is alo played through the ending credits, and can be seen as the signature theme tune. the sequence also seems quite quirky and naive, much like the character we are being introduced to, the film's mood and it's tone.

Throughout the sequence, there are big close ups of the character's hands constructing 'romantic cliches' (left) We later learn that the scene constructed relates to the character;s life, and we learn that the mice are based on the character (who is making the scenes) and his ex wife, which introduces his character's background, without the character even being fully in the scene. When we first see the character (about 20 minutes into the film), he is holding similar dead mice, and is wearing the same clothes as the male mouse in the opening sequence, so the audience can automatically assume that he is the same character who is constructing these scenes, and the one that the scenes were based on. We also see the level of detail taken, for example, when the hair is being dyed (below), which suggests that this activity is important in the character's life.

These scenes may also make the viewer question what is happening in the film, as it seems competely unrelated to what the plot might be, even though the appearance of the mice has a big role in the sort. It keeps the viewer watching, because the opening scene is so unique.

At the end of the film, we also see what has happened after the events of the film, with scenes of dead mice being filmed in a much similar way, for example, the camera tilts up and down in both sequences.

We can conclude from the opening to 'Dinner for Schmucks,' in comparison to other films and genres, that almost always, the opening 5 minutes introduces the main character(s).