Research into sound -Miss Miller

Sound is used in thriller films to create suspense in the film. It leads to a build up of tension as the audience waits on what is going to happen next. Sound is used to engage the audience by creating thrill for them. Different uses of sound can either make a scene happy or scary and this is used a lot in thriller films as long pauses and silent scenes can build up to something bad happening. As well as that, low background music is used to portray that there is a killer around and this leads the audience into suspense as to when something sudden is going to happen. Sound is also used to exaggerate a scene and make something more thrilling that it actually is. Sound portrays each of the characters and builds up excitement within the audience.


In the film "Scream 4", a scene takes place in a girls bedroom and two girls Jill and Kirby receive a phone call from someone who isn't Trevor, who is Jill's boyfriend. Another girl, Olivia, is in the house opposite and suddenly the grim reaper come out of no where and kills her while the two other girls watch from the house opposite.

Scream uses sound as in the scene off screen sound is used when the phone rings and a voice speaks that isn't Trevor. When the phone says, Trevor, the audience relax a little bit but the are kept in suspense when they find out the voice isn't Trevor. This is conventional as it builds up tension because the audience don't know who it is on the phone.

The audience automatically start to worry for the girls as they know that something bad is going to happen because the voice is unknown and so creates an unknown figure. This is convent
ional to thriller films as there is always an unknown killer which makes the audience wonder who it is throughout the film. Thriller films contain a lot of characters which are mysterious as it makes scenes unexpected whenever the unknown person attacks. This engages the audience because the audience would want to know who is ringing up and they would automatically think that something bad is going to happen because the voice is low and scary which portrays a killers voice. The audience are left in suspense as to what is going to happen next. 0.02 - 0.47

The scene also uses non-diegetic sound. This is used when the low music is played when the unknown voice on the phone says that hes in the closet. This is conventional as the music builds suspense because the low music suggests a much serious mood than before. The low music also represents the killer is around which makes the audience more on edge as to whether the killer is actually in the closet. The low music also makes the scene seem a lot less happy than it was before and the audience soon realise that it isn't a joke anymore. This engages the audience because the music creates thrill for the audience as they would want to know whether someone is in the closet. The audience would be intrigued to watch the rest of the scene as suspense has built up to whether the girls are going to open the closet.  1.13 - 1.23

Parallel sound is used when the music gets louder and lower as Kirby makes her way towards the closet. The music getting louder and lower suggests that the girls are getting close to the killer and the low music portrays the killer while the more happier music before portrayed the girls. By making the music get louder is builds up a lot of suspense as it suggests that death is getting closer. This is conventional as in thriller films, music is meant to build up suspense as a character is about to die. The high pitch music in the background suggests the vulnerability of the girl as the low music is overpowering the high music which shows that the killer can easily murder her. It also shows the audience that she is going to die and this is conventional because the vulnerable characters always die. This engages the audience as the audience think that someone is going to die and that someone is in the closet and this gets the audience ready to jump because they think that someone is in there. The music makes the audience feel worried for the characters because they know that someone is in there and they know whats coming and so it creates thrill for the audience. 1.26 - 1.45

The scene also includes silence and this is shown when Kirby opens the closet and no one is in there. This automatically makes the audience wonder where the killer is and creates more suspense as to whether the killer is in the room or not. This is conventional as it builds up suspense for the audience however no one was there and so the audience start to relax. This is used a lot in thriller films as they want t  o create suspense and then make the audience relaxed so they think that nothing is going to happen. However the killer then shows up unexpected which suprises and scares the audience. The silence is used as it shows that the killer is about to strike but keeps it unexpected as the music has stopped which makes the audience think that nothing is going to happen however it just builds up more suspense as the audience don't know when the killer is going to strike. This engages the audience as the it leads them into the unknown as what is going to happen next and this makes the audience nervous for the characters because they don't know when the killer is going to attack. The audience also are left in tension as to whether the killer is in the room or not.1.46 - 1.51

To conclude, sound is used to build up suspense as the audience know when something bad is going to happen as the music gets louder. Sound also shows when the killer is about as the music gets lower which portrays the killer while the high pitch sounds shows that its the victim. The high pitch sound can also make a scene seem happy but also show the innocence and vulnerability of the victim. Sound is played over scenes to make them seem more thrilling and the audience are left in suspension when silence occurs as they don't know when the killer is going to attack. The killer strikes unexpectedly and this makes the audience jump. The sounds used also keep the audience on edge as the sound is what makes the film scary and jumpy. Thriller films always use sound as a way to engage the audience as it keeps them in suspense but also scares them when they least expect it. In my sequence i would like to use non diegetic sound to create a dark atmosphere this is because non diegetic sound builds suspense towards the audience as they are waiting to find out what is going to happen next. I would also add silence to add create tension as the audience have already expected something bad to happen but the silence suggests that the killer hasn't murdered the victim yet and so this builds up tension within the audience to find out when the killer is going to strike. I am also going to use parallel sound as this implies to the audience that something sudden is going to happen and so they are left in suspense as to what is going to happen. It also creates a sinister effect which makes the movie even more thrilling and scary.