Inspirations - Miss Georgiou

I need to look at inspirations so that I can get ideas and  information about what makes a good thriller film. The inspirations looked out will help me with creating my opening sequence as they will give me ideas about how certain shots or sounds effect the audience and how the audience become intrigued in the film and want to watch more. The inspirations i found out were typical to a thriller film and this is what creates surprise, suspense and shock as the audience like to be thrilled and this inspirations help to do so. I need to look at inspirations to find out what would be good to put in my opening sequence and what would build up tension and leave the audience in suspense.

An inspiration  that I am going to use is shadow. This is shown in Annabelle when there is a shadow figure in the background. This is inspirational as it makes the audience wonder where the girl is alone or not as there is a figure in the curtains. This has inspired me to add a shadow figure in my opening sequence as I would like to keep the audience in suspense as to who might be there. It would also create tension and build up a suspense element as the shadow figure would create a dark and mysterious atmosphere which would lead the audience into the unknown as to what is going to happen next. I would also want my killer to be hidden so that it creates an enigma and engages my audience more as the audience would want to know who the killer is. It also makes the film seem more mysterious as the killer is unknown which gets the audience worried for the characters. Including a shadowy figure in my opening sequence will engage my audience and make them more intrigued into the sequence as suspense would be created. This is conventional to thriller films as typically in thriller films, the identity of the killer is hidden to build up suspense and make my audience relate to the characters and feel sympathy for them as they are portrayed as weak and helpless. In my post a shadow would be used when the victim see's a mysterious figure in the curtains. My victim will head towards the shadow and this will be when a jump scare takes place. The shadow will also portray the killer and it will show as the victim gets closer to the shadow, she is also getting closer to the killer and her death. I would also want to use a shadow when the victim see's the killer for the first time but not knowing who the killer is. I would like to add a shadow into my individual narrative as it fits into the thriller genre and is conventional to a thriller film. It helps keep the audience engaged and when planning for my individual narrative, it ill be used when the victim see's someone outside the house or in the curtains to make it seem like someone is constantly watching the victim.

I would also like to include linking of shots within my post and this is shown in the strangers when the girl gets stabbed and the camera shows the isolated location. This is has inspired me to include this in my post as using an isolated location makes the victims seem helpless as they are trapped within their own home and this gives the killer more of a chance of murdering them. It also makes the victims weak and vulnerable as nobody can hear them scream and this is implied when the camera shows the isolated area with no one about. Including linking of shots will also show where the killer wants to strike and who they want to strike.
This makes the audience worried for the victims as they know that the victims are going to die and there is nothing the victims can do about it. Including an isolated location and linking of shots gives a realistic view on the setting and makes the audience think that they are actually there and that there is actually a killer about and this would makes them want to watch the rest of the sequence to din out what happens next and to see if the killer is going to strike the victims. The audience would also be left in suspense as they would feel sorry for the victims and the linking of shots creates tension and shows the vulnerability of the characters. This is inspirational as I would want my audience to feel shocked and surprise but the events that had taken place. In my sequence, I am going to show an isolated location when the victim is in danger. The camera will show an abandoned house and an empty street which will show the victims vulnerability and how the victim is shown as helpless and weak. In my individual narrative, I would want to add the location at the beginning of the narrative so that it sets the theme of a thriller film and lets the audience know that they are watching a thriller film as the abandoned road and house already gives the sense of isolation and already creates tension for the audience. I am going to include an isolated area into my individual narrative so that it straight away creates reactions and emotions within the audience and already helps the audience to create a relationship with the characters.

Parallel sound is also inspirational and this is shown in scream 4 when Kirby is making her way towards the wardrobe. This has inspired me to include parallel sound in my opening sequence as it shows the audience that something bad is going to happen. It creates suspense as the audience are getting prepared to see the killer and they know that someone is going to die. By using parallel sound it builds up tension and gets the audience on edge as something sinister is going to happen and the parallel sound represents the life of the victims and shows that their life is coming to an end.

The parallel sound also helps the audience to know when the killer is about as the sound is usually low which portrays the killer while more high pitch sound represents the victims. Including parallel sound within my sequence will intrigue my audience a lot more as they would know when something bad is going to happen and they are getting prepared for what is going to happen next. Usually in parallel sound the beats get louder to show that the killer is getting closer and this is inspirational because it gets the audience on edge and creates an element of suspense and shock. The audience are expecting something bad to happen which makes them nervous for what is going to happen to the victim. The audience are instantly engaged as they know the victims are helpless and there is nothing the victims can do to stop them from being killed. This is typical in thriller films as the victim always dies while the killer gets away with it. In my sequence, parallel sound will be used when the victim is making her way towards the killer. This will portray that the victims life is coming to an end and will show how she has no escape from the killer. I would want to include parallel sound within my individual narrative as the victim comes closer to the killer. By adding parallel sound in my narrative, it means that the audience instantly know when the victim becomes vulnerable and that the victim is going to die. I want to include parallel sound in my narrative so that the audience become intrigued to find out what happens next and so that the audience can build a stronger relationship with the victim as they begin to feel sorry for the victim.,

I would add close up in my opening sequence. An example of a close up is in final destination 2 when the camera focuses on the powder and the nail. This has inspired me to use it in my sequence as I would want to foreshadow events and make my audience feel suspense as to what is going to happen next. Using close up has also inspired me to include this in my sequence as it makes the audience focus on certain objects which could later link to the death.
Close up is also used to show facial expressions and this creates more surprise and shock for the audience as they see the expressions of the characters and it makes the audience feel sorry for them. Including this in my sequence means that my audience are intrigued to find out how the shots are linked. The audience are also led into the unknown as to how the close up might be linked later on in the film. The close up also shows the determination on the antagonists face and shows that the killer is determined to murder the victims. Close up distinguish the two characters by looking at the facial expressions as the victims are shown to be more scared and weak while the killers are more powerful and this creates tension for the audience as they can relate to the characters. Close up would be used in my sequence when the camera focuses on a certain weapon which will foreshadow events that are going to happen in the sequence. It will also be used to show the facial expressions of the victims face when she see's the killer. I want to use close ups constantly when planning my individual narrative and this will be used to show facial expressions of both the killer and the victim and also to show weapons that could be used to kill the victim. I will be adding a lot of close ups to my individual narrative as I think this helps to portray the characters clearly as the victim and the killer as they make the killer look overpowering while making the victim look weak and helpless. Close up's are used throughout thriller films and they are very conventional to the thriller genre as they keep the audience guessing what is going to happen next especially when there is a close up of a weapon which creates a dramatic effect and instantly turns the situation dark and sinister.

A female victim has inspired me to include this in my sequence and this is shown in Insidious 3 when the girl is alone and is shown to be the target for the killer. This has inspired me to include a female victim in my post as they are shown as vulnerable and weak which gives the killer more of a chance to kill them. Female victims are also the most common of gender to be the victim as the audience have more sympathy for a female victim because they see them as weak and helpless.
This makes the audience relate more to them but also makes the audience feel worried for the character. Female victim is conventional to thriller films as they are always shown to be the target for death by the killer. The female victim is shown right at the beginning of every thriller sequence which instantly engages the audience into the film as they would want to know what is going to happen to the female victim. Using a female victim in my opening sequence will engage my audience straight away as they will know that something bad is going to happen to the victim and they know that a death scene could take place. A female victim also creates an element of suspense for the audience as they want the victim to survive but the killer is shown to be more powerful while the female is naive and gets the audience worried for her life. In my sequence, I am going to use a female victim throughout and this will show to the audience that a death scene is going to take place. A female victim also creates an easy target for the killer and shows that the killer is more likely to kill the victim. A female victim is going to be used when planning my individual narrative as when researching other thriller films, most of them use female victims to portray an easy target and instantly leads the audience into believing that a death is going to take place. I am going to use a female victim in my narrative and I am going to use the typical thriller conventions which make my female victim seem even more helpless and vulnerable.

Finally in my opening sequence I would want to include silence and this is used in Shutter Island when the two male characters are walking around down the hallway and the lights are flickering. This has inspired me to use silence in my opening sequence because it creates a very dark and mysterious atmosphere which sets the theme of a thriller film. It also builds up a lot of suspense as the audience are waiting for something bad to happen and are left on the edge of their seats. The silence creates a fear of the unknown in which whatever happens next is unexpected and makes the audience jump as the killer could come out at any point. The silence creates shock and surprise for the audience as the killer comes out when the audience least expect it. Silence is also used to show power of the killer and shows vulnerability of the victims. The victims have no idea what is coming next and the killer has power over them so the killer could strike at anytime and the victims would be helpless. The silence is used to get the audience worried for the characters as they can relate to them and feel suspense for them. The audience know that something sinister is going to happen as the silence represents the lives of the victims and shows that it is coming to an end. The silence foreshadows death and foreshadows that there is a killer there that is going to murder them. I want this to be included in my opening sequence so that it builds up tension within the audience and makes them feel scared for events that are going to take place. In my sequence silence is going to be used before the killer see's the victim and this will keep the audience on edge as to when the killer is going to appear and it also builds up tension for when the killer is going to strike. In my individual narrative, I want to include a lot of shots that contain silence for instance just before the victim gets killed or when the victim is looking for the killer. These moments would have silence in them as they create a sinister effect and leave the audience in tension. They leave the audience on edge and make the audience feel vulnerable because they don't know what is going to happen next and so they are left in suspense. The audience understand how the victim is feeling and feel as though they are the victim because the silence has helped to create a relationship with the characters. Silence will be used for a lot of shots as it is a typical thriller convention which makes the sequence seem more surprising and thrilling.

To conclude, looking at thriller films for inspiration has helped me with planning my own opening sequence as I want to include certain things that make my opening sequence jumpy and keep the audience in suspense. In my opening sequence I would like to include linking of shots within my opening sequence as I think that this would show the setting easily and make the location seem isolated. This would keep my audience in suspense as they know that the victim cannot escape and so they know that a death is going to take place and this keeps the audience intrigued in my sequence as they would want to know who the killer is and if the victim dies or not. I would also want to include lots of non diegetic sounds which create tense music as this builds up to the victim dying. Parallel sound will also be included to show the audience that the victims life is soon coming to an end and to portray that the killer is getting closer. Adding non diegetic sound to my sequence will also create tension for the audience and portray the two characters, the victim and the killer as the killer will have low beat music while the victim will have high pitch music to imply weakness and vulnerability. Inspirations have helped me to understand what makes a good thriller film and what to include to engage my audience. I have also looked at typical conventions to see what is always in thriller films so that I can include them into my opening sequence. I need to look at inspirations to see what my audience would like best and to see what creates the most suspense for my audience.