Thriller RepresentationsHarinder Hunjan

Conventions of a Thriller Film

Typical thriller films involve a lot of action with car chases, fights and lots of shooting. However, I am going against the usual thriller genre film because my film is a short film and although in the thriller short films I looked at involved chases, I am going against this which may not work when coming to film my idea but will be good as I can talk about how I challenged conventions in my evaluation.

My coursework is based on the thriller genre, however it is specified in the short film area. The idea I am trying to give off is a killer vs a ordinary couple, however the story flips when the ‘killer’ gets into the couples house to find out that they are the killers and he is a police investigator undercover.

Typical Plot Thrillers will often display binary opposites of good vs

bad within the genre e.g. two gangs fighting against each other. A sense of threat and danger is always posed towards the ‘good’ people, given off by the ‘bad’ people which is later overturned as good always beats bad. However, I found this was wrong in short films as the ‘good’ didn’t always win.

In my short film, the plot is totally different as there is a massive twist during the film. This will engage the audience even more then it already has done and will make them feel sympathetic towards the police investigator as the story continues.

Typical Narrative The narrative is usually from the main protagonist’s

perspective by following them in their events which they must overcome. FISKE’s theory is introduced here as it involves the audience as they feel as if it is themselves going through these events. As the film approaches its climax, the audience get an understanding of why the hero is after the villain as they have had history where they fall out etc.

The narrative in my short film is different as there is no history between the policeman and the couple. This makes it harder for the audience to understand and get involved in the film, but through the use of camera shots and angles, I will try to engage them as much as possible.

Characters There are usually heroes, villains and victims who are

somehow related to the hero in each thriller film. The villain usually gets away with everything right up until the end when the hero finally finds them and defeats them. The hero is usually male and so is the villain, but the victim is usually female. From one of the short films I looked at, the villain was a man and the victim was a couple.

My film involves a hero as well as a villain and the audience are introduced to victims towards the end of the film.

Character’s Continued The hero’s appearance is usually smart and formal

and have a professional look about them. They are usually middle aged (30-40) and often have a family. The villain on the other hand is of similar age, maybe younger but has a scruffy look which signifies their mystery look. They usually dress in dark clothes which have connotation of death and evil which is why they are the villain.

My main character (policeman) will be dressed formally because of his occupation and this follows the conventions of the thriller genre. However, the couple will have a happy look about them as I don’t want to make the storyline obvious which is why I have a twist in the film.

Iconography The usual setting for a thriller film is in an urban city. This

makes it more realistic. Main colours that would be used are black and white which are their own opposites as black represents evil and white represents innocence. Guns are the most common weapons used but other weapons may include knives and bats. Black cars are common too, especially in chases and this includes police vehicles too.

My setting hasn’t been decided yet, but it is filmed in a house so it doesn’t matter if it is in an urban city or not because the audience will not know this. Weapons will be used and will feature different kind of weapons including garden tools.