Target audience

The target audience varies on the sub-genre of the thriller. The target audience is split into three parts which is gender, age and social class. These three help to define the target audience of the film along with the content. All thrillers are either 12/12A, 15, or 18+ due to the content being violent or use of cursive language.

Active audience: This is when the audience gets involved with the film. An audience usually becomes active when montage editing is used because the audience has to interpret their view of what happened as they only got a glimpse from the film itself.

12/12A films:

Films that are rated 12 or 12A aren't suitable for people under the age of 12. 

• Moderate language is allowed.
• Dangerous behaviour or actions shouldn't be dwelled upon in the film or able to be copied by members of the audience.
• Use of drugs must me minimal or infrequent.
• Moderate violence is allowed but not allowed to be shown in detail.
• Moderate psychological threat is allowed but not allowed to be extensive.

15 films: 

Films that are rated 15 aren't suitable for people under the age of 15.

• Frequent strong language is allowed unlike age twelve films.
• Accessible weapons can be shown but not dwelled upon.
• Drugs may be shown but not promoted.
• Violence is allowed but shouldn't focus on pain or injury.
• Strong threats are allowed but not if they're sexualised.

18 films: Films that are rated 18 aren't suitable for people under the age of 18.

Not much content isn't allowed in eighteen rated movies due to its adult rating other than the following:

• Material in breach of criminal law or created through criminal offence isn't permitted.
• Detailed violent or dangerous acts, illegal drug use, or anything which may cause harm to public health or morals isn't permitted.

All information was gathered from the BBFC, displaying their guidelines towards film ratings. All films must be sent off and rated by the BBFC before public release.

Camera shots

Extreme close up:
Extreme close up shots are often used in thriller movies to convey fear to the audience or show fear on particular characters face/eyes.

In this shot in Sherlock Holmes it shows the characters mentallity, relating the way he cross-dresses.

Close up: This shot is used to show emotion on a characters face in reaction to another's characters dialogue or actions. In this shot it emphasises on the importance of an item in the scene from Sherlock Holmes. this item can relate to a character in the film as an item of possession or a key item in the plot.

Two shot: A two shot shows the relationship between two characters of a film. You can also compare both characters in this shot on their similarities and differences e.g.: dialogue and costume. This shot shows the contrast between two characters in Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock being less well dressed than the other character shows his reckless nature and anti-con-formative attitude.

Low angle shot: Low angle shots can be used in thriller films to make a character look bigger and more threatening. This shot is usually used on the villian in the film and emphasizes their importance/power over their victim. In this shot the low angle shows Sherlock to be the strong male protagonist in the story.

High angle shot:

This type of shot is used to make a character look small and inferior to other characters or their surroundings.  This shot is usually used in a thriller film on the victim in a moment of despair.

This shot shows how lifeless Sherlock is as he's swallowed by a crowd of people.

Extreme long shot: These shots are used to show the audience the environment the characters are in or make the characters look small. Extreme long shots can make the environment look harsh or welcoming to the characters within it. This shot shows the beauty of nature in the scene and also gives the audience an idea of what time in history the film is set in by the inclusion of an early make of car.

Thriller conventions

The conventions of the thriller genre are based on sound, editing, lighting, mise-en-scene and cinematography. .

The codes and conventions are mainly what the audiences expect to see within a thriller this includes all types of thrillers, including its sub-genres, (psychological, action, etc.). The codes and conventions in a thriller always includes a victim, which most of the time is a vulnerable female protagonist and a dominant male character. This lets the audiences relate with the stereotypes and therefore this produces more audience appeal and realism.

Psychological thrillers usually play with audiences minds by giving a false sense of security, using red herrings, or manipulating a character keep audiences guessing. Sound is a large factor in creating tension in a thriller sequence. High pitched strings are usually used to heighten suspense, eventually the suspense is released with a loud diegetic noise.

If the theme of the film is water or ice for instance, the sound used may be similar to the noise you get when circling a finger round a glass, this is a convention of a thriller because the image and sound are contrapuntal (synchronous). 

Camera shots also play a key role in expressing a characters emotion. A close up shot with the background blurred out may suggest psychological introspection, meaning the character is oblivious to the world around him, unaware of any hidden danger.

thriller genres

thriller films are designed to give the audience the "edge of their seat" feeling. all thrillers do this by adding suspense and/or mystery to their film. all the small foci of the film add up to do this, e.g.: the lighting used in a scene can be really low or shinning from a certain source and leaving the room pitch black eslewhere. This element alone can leave the audience feeling fearful, panicy or wondering what the camera's hiding in the dark. thriller can also be split into many different sub-genres that specialize in scaring the audience a certain way.

Conspiracy thriller:
This sub-genre focusing around the protagonist confronting a large orginazation on their evil doing, although he/she are the only person that's able to see it. Conspiracy thrillers usually play around the secretivity of government organizations. An example is The Bourne Ultimatum. In this film the young protagonist (Jason Bourne) must fight against a secret government organization set on destroying innoccent lives.

Crime thriller:
Crime thriller are a mix of both crime and thriller. They usually focus more on the criminals and their actions leading to their crimes more than what their crimes are. An example is the film Se7en starring Bradd Pitt and Morgan Freeman as the chase down the mysterious John Doe.

Disaster thriller:
Disaster films focus on a group of survivors and their survival after a catastrophic artificial or natural disaster. There are many extreme long shots and long shots in these films to show the scale of damage that the survivors have to deal with. examples of disaster movies are 2012, The Day After Tomorrow and Deep Impact.

Mystery thriller:
These films usually relate closely to crime thrillers in terms of narrative. They also focus on a detective or private investigator which also closely relates to the crime thriller sub-genre. The plots revolve around   the protagonist searching for clues in order to uncover a mystery or criminal. An example is Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. This film is also a period drama as it is based on an iconic British figure at a point in history.

Psychological thriller:

Plot

Our film will begin with a series of short, montage shots showing key information about the events leading up to the scene and an idea of Hiro's family background. The shots show him paying respect and tribute to his dead parents and grabbing traditional & western weapons for his pursuit to avenge their deaths. The following shots show Hiro venturing towards his parents murdered Mr. Smith for revenge. Knowing that Mr. Smith is guarded, Hiro proceeds to slaughter some his henchman in order to reach him. Upon first contact with Mr. Smith he notices a resemblence and finds out they are related by family but not fully. Even though he has this knowledge of Mr. Smith, he continues his act of revenge and tries to attack Mr. Smith. The next few shots show a brief fight sequence between the two brothers and Mr. Smiths physical superiority over Hiro, leading to his inevitable downfall. The scene ends on a tilted shot showing Mr. Smith walking away from the scene, leaving Hiro broken on the ground and on the verge of passing out. Scene finishes and title takes the screen, followed by credits of cast and crew. This opening scene of our film only shows the equilibrium and start of the disequalibrium in relation to Todorov's narrative theory.

If the film was to continue beyond the three minute limit and into a full length film it would show Hiros struggle against Mr. Smith and his attempts to gain the satisfaction of revenge or some sort of solace. The full length film would show Hiro going through disequalibrium, being beaten down by his rival and left for dead. Hiros recongnition of the problem he's facing and what he has to do. His journey to avenge his parents death at the hands of the merci-less Mr. Smith. The new equalibrium would consist of Hiro having his revenge against Mr. Smith and returning to lead a peaceful life some sort.