Chess Film: Selecting a Genre

My group quickly agreed to focus on the horror genre for our film, but after further discussion and exploring different plot ideas, we decided to narrow it down to a thriller. A thriller is a genre that shares similarities with horror films, but sets a primary focus on building tension and suspense. Our film is going to be suspenseful and we plan on creating that tension through codes. There are many subgenres to thriller films including psychological thriller, action thriller, crime thriller, and supernatural thriller. Our film is going to be a psychological thriller because it will tackle the meaning of existence. 

Genre Basics- Thrillers

Codes and Conventions of a Thriller Film

The Keys to a Mystery-Thriller Film

I used these websites for my research and I was able to narrow down which codes I can see my group using in our film. 

Sound codes- Tension music: 

Since there will be no dialogue in our film, we will heavily rely on tension music to create the suspense we want. All of these sounds would be non-diegetic. One of my group members mentioned the Killing Eve extract we watched in class and how the music perfectly added to the plot. Another example I think of is Stranger Things and the various sounds it uses to enhance the plot of the show. 

Technical codes- Cinematography: 

Close-up shots and extreme close-up shots will be used in our film to create emphasis on the chess game. These shots will also be used to conceal information. Using other shots could reveal too much information, making the suspense unclear to the audience.

Example of a close-up shot from Get Out, 2017

Symbolic codes- Mise En Scene and Editing: 

Low-key lighting, which helps create shadows, and location play a role in thriller films. Both of these aspects of mise en scene help create a dark and mysterious atmosphere. The Sixth Sense is a good example of a film that uses low-key lighting in scenes that are supposed to feel tense and unsettling. However, these aspects will be difficult to create in the middle of the day on our school patio. We cannot change the location, but our editor can go in and alter the lighting or add some filters to replicate this atmosphere. I will also discuss with my group potentially using black and white, another repeated element in thriller films. 

Low-lighting in The Sixth Sense, 1999