Thriller - Shooting schedule

Shooting Schedule - Anonymous Lead by Seb Wright on Scribd

Thriller - Explanation of Planning

The planning of our Thriller film was sought out in a number of stages, which inevitably shaped the outcome, design and plot of the thriller.
Themes: for the main themes of our thriller we decided to take heavy influence from the Film Noir genre, when plotting out themes we discussed the use of chiaroscuro lighting effects which were also used excessively by the great directors of the period's prime. From this we decided on the types of motif's we would use in the film, such as a burning candle, playing cards, and the red shoes, the latter of which was intended in our opening.
Lighting: to follow along with the Film Noir style, we decided to take influence from and use traditional effects and lighting setups which became an enormous trademark in the film industry. This involved such effects like a black and white overlay, low key and high contrast lighting, coupled with the tradition three point lighting system
Sound: Sound played an enormous part in our thriller as the dark mise-en-scene makes it difficult too see the characters movements, as was our intention, as it adds a layer of mystery to the characters, forcing the audience to concentrate on the actions occurring. On top of this, our plot heavily relies on the idea of telecommunication between the detective Jeremy Fisher and the anonymous caller. Because the telephone is a medium that uses sound, we thought it suitable to focus on sound as a primary feature in our film.

Thriller - Textual References

For our thriller opening we wanted to make both explicit and implicit references to media texts that inspired the development of our opening: Anonymous lead. Through this many elements of our thriller draw from a range of time periods of film, as well as directors/cinematographers and across mediums which have influenced our decisions towards plot point, characters, techniques and traditions.
We decided to focus on traditional forms of the genre. After considerable research into different sub-genres and takes on the age-old formula, we decided to take heavy inspiration from the origins of the thriller genre, specifically the period between 1935-1960: 'Film Noir'. Inspired by the classics, such as 'Double Indemnity' (1944) or 'The Third Man' (1949), we decided on a black and white theme throughout, and further promted our use of Chiariscuro lighting techniques like High contrasting shots and low-key lighting to fill a dark mise-en-scene.

Many other directors and film makers have drawn from elements of this time period, and subsequently the 'Neo-Noir' has become popular, such as the 2005 film 'Sin city' from director Robert Rodriguez, from inspired us to opt for the idea of outstanding red shoes to contrast the vastly dark mise-en-scene and black and white effect, This is in reference to the character of the nameless victim at the beginning of the film, her violently red dress strands out extraordinarily against the black and white of the film, instantly drawing the viewers gaze to her, which decided to replicate within our open through the character of Alison.

Independent study - How do directors use techniques within a claustrophobic space to increase menace in thrillers?

127 Hours

'127 Hours' is a 2010 Thriller/drama by director Danny Boyle based on the inspiring true story of Aron Ralston who was trapped under a rock for 5 days before severing his arm with a blunt pocket knife to survive while in a hiking accident in the deserts of Utah.

Boyle makes excellent use of the small ravine that was constructed for the set to air a sense of vivid claustrophobia to the audience. One such technique which used alongside this claustrophobic set design is specific manipulation of camerawork to place the audience in such an enclosed space to give the feel of being trapped with Aron (James Franco) in a life threatening and menacing environment. Furthermore Boyle uses the clever technique of putting the audience in the position of Aron's portable camera, which allowed Boyle to put the audience so uncomfortably close to Franco as the actor manipulated the handheld camera within the small space also making use of dutch angles because of the space restrictions, literally obstructing any wide angles that could be used, which heavily drove the incredible menace and claustrophobia which the film created using these techniques in the field of camerawork.

Additionally, the director of 127 hours also uses minimalist lighting effects throughout the film to collaborate with the claustrophobic space to highlight the theme of menace and danger throughout the film, given the space in which to film and the naturalistic approach to telling the true story of Aron, the set therefore restricted lighting choices in it's production. Throughout the film, the only lighting used is positioned above Franco to emulate the light of the ravine. Furthermore, this lighting choice connotes Aron's imprisonment as the light is only a feint glow, leaving nothing but shadows at the base of the ravine, which, coupled with the sense of claustrophobia created by specific camerawork and mise-en-scene, an impending sense of menace is created which blocks in the audience and traps them alongside Franco's character.

Motifs in Thrillers

A motif in a piece of media is an important concept, idea or theme, repeated throughout to symbolise a specific message to the audience. In this can range from themes of hope and ideals about the future, for instance, the use of green light in 'The Great Gatsby' to signify his hopes and dreams, to darker, more cynical themes such as the doorway in The Sixth Sense' which is a constant reminder to the character of Cole of  his weakness as a child and reference to his first encounter with his mother's ghost and the low angles used to further him as a weak character.

'Bladerunner' (1982) is set in new-world San Francisco depicting a dystopian future where 'Replicants', androids identical to humans are used on off world colonies as slave labour, but are prohibited from Earth. The film follows Rick Deckard a Bladerunner tasked with hunting down four rouge Replicants that have made their way onto the Earth. Throughout the film the motif of imprisonment and freedom is is shown through specific mise-en-scene choices to suggest how truly imprisoned the people of New San Francisco are by the government and their own society, The scene I have decided to focus on demonstrates such a motif through a panning shot of Deckard in his apartment, hunched over a piano, the collection of mess piled about the piano blocks the view of the rest of the apartment, creating a wall that seals him into such a small space, which further emphasises the motif of imprisonment. To contrast this, as the scene progresses, we, as the audience are thrust into a dream sequence of a unicorn prancing in a forest, that often connotes the idea of freedom in many other media texts. the unicorn is shown to be prancing and seemingly fighting against a force that the audience is blind to, further suggesting the motif of imprisonment and freedom.

Thriller - initial ideas

Thriller - Script

BEGIN TITLES

As the title sequence begins, the ringing of a phone from a phone box dominates the scene. Someone picks up the phone, ending the constant ringing. The receiver is Investigator JEREMY FISHER and he is curious as to who is calling. The caller is ANONYMOUS, hinting the FISHER’S curiosity is growing.

A silence is held after the phone is picked up. 

ANONYMOUS

You’re Investigator Jeremy Fisher, aren’t you? 

FISHER

Yes. Speaking is…? 

ANONYMOUS doesn’t answer to FISHER’S question; just continues.

ANONYMOUS

I have some information regarding Dean and Alison Atkinson.

DEAN and ALISON ATKINSON are the criminal couple who are at large after committing a bank robbery.

FISHER

How do you know about the–

ANONYMOUS interrupt FISHER blatantly. 

ANONYMOUS

They’re at [Address]. Better swim, Fisher.

Abruptly, ANONYMOUS hangs up the phone. 

CUT FROM BLACK SCREEN:

EXT. PHONE BOX – NIGHT

FISHER’S footsteps are heard as he makes his way to [Address], leaving the phone dangling from its holder. The ‘Interrupted Call’ tone drones in the background.

INT. AN APARTMENT

DEAN is anxious. He paces about the room questioning to himself what to do next.

DEAN

We’ve got to go. They’ve found out.

DEAN slams a suitcase onto the table, filling it with belongings and supplies.

ALISON

Why did we wait so long?

DEAN, with a packed suitcase, places his gun inside. The loading of the bullets sounds out. DEAN slams the suitcase shut. As the suitcase is closing, the screen cuts to black, revealing the title ‘Anonymous Lead’. The droning sound of a dialling tone raises in volume.