Codes and Conventions of a Thriller

Lighting

• Low level lighting
• Shadows/limited view of a character
• Often at night/dark/eerie
• Dim colours - red is also used

Setting

• Isolated/deserted/exotic - desert, ranch, old warehouse.
• Confined locations - lift, phone booth, cellar, train. (Generic feature of a thriller is entrapment, thus claustrophobic spaces are key.)

Editing

• Quick cuts/fast pace - enhances anxiety and confusion.
• Jump cuts - shows erratic tension.
• Match cuts - links two ideas.

Cinematography

• Camera angles low/high - plays with and highlights the roles of authority/power within the film.
• Point of view shot - demonstrates what the character sees.
• Establishing shot - setting the scene.
• Close ups - highlight sense of anxiety and tension. Emotions are clearly seen.
• Frantic camera movements - portrays tense environment.

Non-diegetic sound

• High pitched music - heightens suspense.
• Ambience music - helps to create the correct atmosphere.
• Fast pace music - essential for action scenes.

Diegetic sound

• Creaky doors/wind/tap running/footsteps - sounds that alert the audience that something is about to happen.
• Silence - thought provoking.
• Heavy breathing
• Whispering

Characters

• Criminals, stalkers, assassins, down-on-their-luck losers, innocent victims, dark pasts, psychotic people, terrorists, private eyes, drifters.
• Ambiguous roles - are they good/bad?