Codes And Conventions Of The Thriller Genre

The Thriller Genre:

A thriller usually consists of a battle between a protagonist, and an antagonist, caused when there is a disruption in the initial equilibrium. The story then shows a building the tension and suspense, ready for the climax of the storyline. The aim of the protagonist is to restore the equilibrium, where as the antagonist seeks to destroy it.

Conventions Of Thrillers Include: 

Low Key Lighting

Quick Cuts

Shadows

Tension Music

Changes in Angle of Shots

Exaggerated Diegetic Sound effects

Montages

Protagonist at mercy of Antagonist

Character Conventions:

The protagonist is a brave courageous person, who is innately good 

The antagonist has a hidden identity which the audience will uncover as the film progresses. Often wants revenge on the protagonist because of a past event. 

Cinematography Codes for Thrillers: 

Close up, and extreme close up shots. Used to show emotion, and to help the audience notice certain things, or link sequences together, important for the narrative. 

Shots of antagonist are ambiguous. They often are cut quickly, have low key lighting. Or focus on a silhouette, or shadow.  

 Editing Conventions:

Jump cuts- helps the narrative

Cross Cutting - helps audience link the narratives into a story

Sound Conventions:

Jumpy non-diegetic, tension building music. 

Mise en Scene:

Dark often gothic setting

Low key lighting

Antagonist in dark clothes, Protagonist in everyday clothes

Make up and hair of antagonist often is warped and strange, Protagonist's is usually more normal.

Filmstoke (Often black and white in parts, or even grainy) 

Narrative

Narrative and story are different. A story is a sequence of events, known as the plot. Whereas narrative is the way that those events are put together to be presented to an audience. so, when analysing narrative you analyse the way the story is put together, including the intended theme,  instead of the story itself.  

Narrative Includes:

Technical codes

Verbal codes

Symbolic Codes

Structure

Character

Narrative Conflict

Russian Theorist Tzevtan Todorov suggested that all narratives have a 3 part structure. Equilibrium (beginning), Dis-equilibrium (middle), and New Equilibrium (end). This theory takes into account Aristotle's theory that all drama is conflict, so therefore there is a dis-equilibrium at the heart of every narrative. Claude Levi-Strauss had a theory called binary opposites, where each narrative has an opposing force. These theories provide formal framework for describing and understanding the meaning and significance of a narrative.  

Terror In The Night - Animatic

This is the animatic of our groups horror story, Terror In The Night.

Film Language

Binary Opposition

Binary Opposition

Structuralism -  understanding semiotics through its opposite which is called the binary opposite. 

Claude Levis Strauss and Roland Barthes developed this idea.

They realised that meaning can never reside entirely within a thing in itself, but only from a complete appreciation of a thing opposite ~ called its binary opposite.

Examples of Binary Pairs:

- Fast/ slow

- Strong/Weak

- Tall/Small

- Good/Bad

- Wealthy/Poor

- Moral/ Immoral

- Happy/Sad

- Male/Female

- Black/White

- Life/Death

- Calm/ Moody

- Interesting/ Boring

Famous Directors on Genre

Famous, Accomplished, and Influential Directors on Genre

Daniel Chandler: 

"Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or settings) and / or form (including structure and style) which as shared by the texts which are regarded as belonging to them."

David Buckingham:

"Genre is not simple 'given' by culture: rather it is in a constant process of negotiation and change"

John Fiske:

Defines genre as "attempts to structure some order into the wide range of texts and meanings that circulate in our culture for the convention of both producers and audiences"

Rick Altman:

Argues that "Genres are usually defined in terms of media language (semantic elements) and codes (iconography/ stars) or certain ideologies and narratives (syntactic elements)."

Regenrification

Semiotics

Semiotics

Representation is the way people, groups, cultural ideas, are shown by the media.

Mediation is the process where media institutions are the go between, they select and organise material for their audience.

The problems with mediated reality:

False expectations
Could be completely made up

Denotes- literal meaning of a sign

Connotes- interpreted meaning of a sign

Iconic- work through resemblance

Symbolic- learned

Indexial- casual link

Signs are ploysemic.

E.g. the character from Star Trek “Spock”’s ears. (as a polysemic sign)

Iconic- the difference between Spock and humans

Symbolic- Spock's nature, intelligence, and logic

Indexical-  the fact that Spock has a mixed parentage (human + alien) (human ears with a difference)  

The Horror Cycle

Genre Introduction Notes

Compilation of my introduction to Genre notes

• Genre is a way of categorising a piece of media through its contents. 
• Genre and actors like to stick together, because its reassuring for the audience, and therefore the film does well. 
• E.g. The actor Martin Freeman always plays a guy dragged on an adventure. 
• Many different stereotypes make up a genre and mise-en-scene classify a film. 
• Each genre has its own set of rules (conventions).
• Genres can be warped into propaganda. its a way of controlling the masses, and what they think. 
• E.g. you cant have a crime film without punishment.
• Violent video games go the other way, allowing people to release energy, but they may however give the wrong ideas, that people may replicate. There have been multiple debates on this issue. 
• There is a constant cycle of genre so audiences don't get bored. 
• Audience gets satisfaction when "bad" gets punished, and therefore the film will do well. Films offer comfortable reassurance in an uncomfortable world. 
• E.g. in the popular horror and action TV show "Supernatural" the main protagonists nearly always defeat the monster/ supernatural being of the week. This stops the audience being scared, they are more comfortable, so Supernatural does well. 

When I am making my film I will think about the conventions, and stereotypes of the thriller genre, and I will try to include them.