Audience Theories

Uses and Gratifications:

The theory was developed by Bumler and Katz. It suggest that audiences use any media text for various reasons as suggested below:

• Diversion (Escapism) - escape from everyday problems and routine
• Personal Identity - finding yourself reflected in texts, learning behaviour and values from texts 
• Personal Relationships (Social Interaction) - using the media for emotional and other interaction e.g. substituting soap operas for family life
• Entertainment - Using the media as a source of entertainment
• Surveillance (Information) - Gathering information from the media e.g. documentaries, weather reports

We will consider why our audience will be watching our thriller piece and take this theory into consideration during production.

Hypodermic Needle:

According to this theory the media is like a syringe which injects ideas, attitudes and believes into the audience who have little choice but to be influenced. For example, according to the theory, if you watch something violent you will be inclined to do the same violent thing.

We need to take this theory into consideration when making our film. Our piece may have scenes of violence or stalking and we need to consider how this will effect our audiences.


Active/Passive Audiences:

An active audience is an audience that thinks about what they have seen on screen after watching it. What they see has the potential to affect them physiologically. A passive audience is the opposite of this and they do not think about what they have seen and it doesn't affect them afterwards.


Identification and Sensitisation:

Identification - violence in the media releases tension and desires through identification with fictional characters and events (catharsis).

Sensitisation - violence in the media can sensitise people to the effects of violence.

Six Stages of Media Production

Hitchcock: a Case Study

Alfred Hitchcock, the English film-maker/director has helped to shape the modern-day thriller genre. One of his earliest films was the silent film, The Lodger (1927), was a suspenseful Jack the Ripper story. This was followed by his next thriller Blackmail (1929) which was his first sound film. Hitchcock makes a signature cameo appearance in every film after 1940, except The Wrong Man (1956). Although he was nominated five times as Best Director between 1940 and 1960, Hitchcock never won an Academy Award.

Alfred Hitchcock is considered the acknowledged auteur (theory that a director's film reflects the director's personal creative vision) master of thriller and suspense. He manipulates the audience's fears and desires. He often wove taboo or sexually-related themes into his films, such as the repressed memories of Marnie in Marnie (1964) and the homosexuality in Strangers on  a Train (1951).

In many of his films, there was a life and death chase ending with a 'showdown' at a famous/familiar landmark, e.g. London's Albert Hall in The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956). He also uses tight and confined spaces or restrictive train journeys to heighten emotions i.e. The Lady Vanishes (1937).

Hitchcock often used 'red herrings' (also called McGuffin) within his films to catch the viewers attention. This misdirects the audience and keeps their attention on the film. Some McGuffin's used by Hitchcock include:

• The Lady Vanishes (1938) - the coded music contained in a piece of music
• Strangers on a Train (1951) - Guy's cigarette lighter
• The Birds (1963) - the cause of the strange bird attacks

Hitchcock explores the darker side of human nature through situations, including sexuality, guilt, punishment, paranoia and obsession. He normally would let the viewer know that some horrible event would happen creating unbearable suspense while viewers waited for the inevitable.

After the classic films of the 1950s, his films were wildly uneven. He produced Psycho in 1960 and The Birds in 1963. Both of which became very successful quickly.

Brief History

In order to help build our ideas for our thriller piece, I have researched the history of thriller films and will take this information I have found into account when planning our film piece.


Media Timeline:



(source: http://www.disabilityplanet.co.uk/critical-analysis.html)


The Kuleshov Experiment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gLBXikghE0


Kuleshov and Eisenstein experimented with cut up footage in 1910 to 1920. They did this to see how the results would get different responses from audiences depending on what the sequence showed. This experiment demonstrated that the context of a piece of footage is vitally important. Political film makers often used this technique for propaganda purposes.


Thriller Films

Earliest 'thrillers':

• Safety Last (1923)
• The Cat and the Canary (1927)
• The Bat Whispers (1930)
• M (1931)
• Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1931)
• Murders in the Zoo (1933)
• Gaslight (1944)
• Laura (film noir - 1944)
• The Picture of Dorian Gray (1945)
• The Spiral Staircase (1945)
• The Lady from Shanghai (1948)
• Sorry, Wrong Number 91948)
• The Third Man (1949)

(source: http://www.filmsite.org/thrillerfilms.html)

Lighting Practice

In order to prepare ourselves for our thriller piece, We practised using light and different shots to achieve the 'thriller' effect.

Using a torch on a phone, we took this photo. The light is concentrated on the left of the face, casting the right into darkness. This creates a 'thriller' feel as half of the face is in the shadows.

This photograph was taken with the light source beneath the subject. Most of the face is dark and very little can be seen clearly. This could be used on the antagonist's face to make him/her appear sinister and evil.

This was taken using the natural light that filtered through the door. The shadows aren't as deep or black but it still creates a 'thriller' look.

The different lighting methods could be used within our film piece. I will take these images into consideration when thinking about the lighting in our thriller film.

Textual Analysis of 'Se7en'

Analysis of a thriller opening. Can be used to gather ideas for our own task.

Thriller Opening - Initial Ideas

I will be working in the same group that I worked with in my preliminary task - Lois, Darby and Tasmine. We will delegate the tasks between us equally and fairly while playing to our individual strengths. Lois will act and edit and Tasmine and Darby will organise our time and film. I will also help film and occasionally act if required. I will also make sure that our piece has continuity and the mise-en-scene is accurate. This will include: costume, props and lighting,

Although we didn't get far with our ideas, we decided we could do a horror/psychological-thriller with a stalker and a victim. The antagonist may be introduced at the point.

Titling Practice

To prepare for our thriller main task, we practised using After Effects to add titling sequences to short clips of video. This was incredibly hard but I did manage to add text to some footage. Before having to title our main piece, I will need more practise at titling.

Conventions of the Thriller Film Genre

What is a thriller?
   It is a broad genre of literature, film, gaming and television. It usually includes numerous, often overlapping sub-genres. Literary devices are used in thrillers to create suspense red herrings and cliff-hangers. Thrillers are fast paced with frequent action. They often feature a resourceful hero who must thwart the plans of more powerful and better equipped villains.

Types of thrillers:

• Spy - James Bond
• Military - Saving Private Ryan
• Political - Argo
• Conspiracy - The Insider
• Medical - Coma
• Forensic - The Bone Collector
• Psychological - Seven
• Horror - Silence of the Lambs

Characteristics of a thriller:
   Thrillers often overlap with mystery stories but instead of solving a mystery, the protagonist thwarts the villain's plan. They occur on a grand scale, e.g. serial/mass murder, terrorism, assassination and the overthrow of the government. Standard plot elements include senses of jeopardy and confrontations. There is often a climax where the mystery is solved, the villain is defeated and the population is saved. Thrillers often take place in exotic, dramatic settings such as, cities, deserts, churches, subways, airports, polar regions and high seas.

Barthes' 'Narrative Codes'

Barthes' Narrative Codes are five codes that are used within media to engage the audience. These include:

• Action Code - This is used in a media text to indicate what the next part will be. It advances the narrative e.g. the starting of a car engine would suggest that the car will drive away.
• Enigma (mystery) Code - This is how much information is given to the audience. It sets up a problem for the audience to solve, grabbing their attention and keeping them interested e.g. a hand opening a door but the audience not knowing whose hand it is.
• The Semic code - This is the symbols, signs and meanings within media that tells the audience about its narrative and characters e.g. films including vampires would include the garlic and the fear of it.
• Cultural Code - It is used in order for the narrative to makes sense to a socially and culturally aware audience. It references to elements in the real world that the audience will recognise e.g. Aston Martins from the James Bond films.
• Code of Oppositions - This is the use of binary opposites within media e.g. black v white.

The narrative of our preliminary task was a basic kidnap story. A young girl was attacked and tied up in a cupboard and the antagonist leaves her in the dark. Later, the protagonist saves the girl and frees her. The antagonist watches the victim and the protagonist leave. Within this, we used some of Barthes' Narrative Codes without realising.

Action Code - This was used many times within our piece. On example of this is when the protagonist enters the store room. The going through the door indicates that the protagonist will find the victim.

Enigma Code - This was used when the antagonist kidnaps the victim. The audience don't know why she has been kidnapped. This grabs their attention and will make them continue to watch to find out the answer.

Cultural Code - This was used throughout the piece. English was spoken and it was filmed inside a school suggesting to the audience that it is taking place in a well educated, western country.

Code of Oppositions - This was used within the clothing of the protagonist and antagonist. The protagonist wore light clothing and the antagonist wore darker clothing.

However,  we didn't include any of the Semic Code. This couldn't really be applied to the preliminary task as it wouldn't be appropriate. But, this could be used within our final thriller piece to inform the audience more about the characters and indicate the meaning within it.