1. THE CODES & CONVENTIONS OF THRILLER FILMS By Kieran Thompson-Oliver & Ciaran Walsh

2. CHARACTERS In thrillers you will find a typical set of characters, not in all of them of course. But you will find at least one in any thriller. For Example; In ‘Se7en’ you will find that there is an Unknown Antagonist and the film shows how they have to work out where the killer is and why he is killing these people. Examples:  Detectives  Shady figure  Murderer  Serial Killer  Unknown antagonist  People with authority (Government figures, Federal officers)  Protagonist (Men/Women)  Spies  Civilians

3. LOCATIONS When looking at locations, you often find that they are set in bad weather, usually rain. They usually try and set the mood of the film straight away by showing the weather. (Usually thunder & rain)  Examples:  Derelict Buildings/Houses  Alleyways  The future  Locations that are ill lit  Offices  Places with little or no chance of escape ( A remote island, at sea)  Mental asylums  Abandoned places  Foreign Lands  Labs  Hospitals  The countryside

4. EXAMPLES: Thunder/Lightning Rain Orchestral Music (Fast/Slow Tempo) Dark/Eerie Music Gun Shots  In thrillers they tend to try and set the tone/atmosphere surrounding the film from the outset. For example; They like to use thunder and/or rain in order to set a dark eerie tone. They did this in Shutter Island in the scene where they are on the boat. MUSIC/ SOUND EFFECTS

5. EXAMPLES OF TYPES OF LIGHT USED: Dark Dingy Dull Blue Lighting Red Lighting Simple/Plain Lighting White lights  The vast majority of thrillers use a lot of dark/dingy lighting in which the surroundings are barely visible. For example in Se7en there is a scene in which they find one of the seven sins written behind a fridge. LIGHTING

6. EXAMPLES; Props will range from things like: Guns Vehicles (Usually cars) Case Files Other forms of weaponry Phones Drugs Computers Evidence.  The typical set of props in Thriller films depends on the type of Thriller you are watching, i.e; Psychological Thriller, Crime Thriller etc. PROPS