Conventions of a Psychological Thriller

Mirrors-Are used to portray the use of reflection of a characters inner self, as well as representing 'the dark side' of some characters.

Shadows and Low key lighting -Are used as a convention of a thriller film they are both used to add tension in a scene, and to represent the inner darkness within the characters

Quick cuts, obtrusive and montage editing-Are all frequently used i psychological thrillers to highlight the feelings of suspense and tension, mainly used during important scenes. e.g. the opening sequence of 'Se7en' (1995) 

Flashbacks-Is a typical convention of a thriller because it can show what has happened previously, to give the audience an insight into the characters past.

e.g. the film 'Memento' (2000)

Tension Music-Used to set the mood and create suspense or shock the audience.

For example the shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's film 'Psycho' (1960)

Colours- The colours used in psychological thrillers are predominantly red, black and white. They have connotations of danger, violence, blood, evil and mystery. Low key lighting is often used on the main subjects to create enigma and mystery. The background is often dark to emphasise this. It also helps to create an unsettling atmosphere and further build tension.

Themes of Psychological Thrillers

Psychological Thrillers frequently focus on characters minds by regularly having a first person narrative, allowing the audience further insight into the mind of their antagonist.

The idea of what is real and what is not is commonly used in psychological thrillers such as Shutter Island, Black Swan. This compels the audience to pay attention and interests them as it forces them into thinking so that when they decipher the story they feel a sense of achievement. However, in some films, many viewers are left confused rather than gratified such as Inception.

Mind - the mind is explored mainly via the first person narrative, revealing inner conflict and the characters emotional state.

Identity - characters often doubt who they are or what purpose they are serving so set out to discover themselves.

Perception - often a characters perception of the world is revealed to be different to that of other with a more sound state of mind.

Death - characters often have a fear and or fascination with death and the dead.

Institutional Analysis

Where our film might appear:
During film research, we also looked at where general films may be shown, mostly looking at amateur films as they would be likely shown in different ways to professional films. It is important to consider in what ways the audience can view the film, when it is being produced, in order to increase the interest in the film and the profit it would make. The most common way of a film being watched is through cinema chains, such as Odeon, which had global branches, allowing the film to be seen by various people over the world. However an amateur film would probably be seen online as the people/companies making the film would either not have the interest or not afford to have their film shown in the cinema. The film could be uploaded on a website such as YouTube or daily motion for other people to view and comment on allowing the interest of the film to grow. Low budget films can be also shown on paid film services such as Sky Box Office and Netflix, or downloaded onto a mobile phone through this. Films being viewed in this way can occasionally cause issues as they may be being viewed illegally.

The Sixth Sense

 In this opening sequence techniques are used to make the film appeal to its genre, which is thriller/horror. The use of black background with white writing creates a sinister effect and feeling about the film, as the black is the prominent colour. This can symbolize a thriller film. The wriitng is also begin split during the sequence, perhaps symbolizing a knife. Along with the writing, there is also non diagetic sound in the background at a low volume and slow pace, creating a haunted and uncomfortable feeling. Also as this title sequence appears it runs with the music which abruptly gains a fast pace, which is unnerving to the audience and gives them a chill, which can relate to features of thriller films, as they tend to have dramatic and changing soundtracks. There is also a light that runs over each of the words in the title sequence, which looks like someone's eyes watching you, creating fear and a thrilling effect. This is quite a short opening sequence, but is effective nonetheless.

Black Swan - Opening Sequence

The opening sequence for the thriller film 'Black Swan' does not give much away as to what the film is about. However through this opening sequence the film shows words throughout the sequence of people involved and the type of production it is. This can help us with our thriller opening sequence because usually at the start of an opening sequence the production company and people involved appear in a certain way. For example the opening sequence of 'Black Swan' shows the words come up in black and white font suiting the background of the sequence which also comes up in a very slow pace which also relates to the slow pace of the background film. Also within the opening sequence for 'Black Swan' the ambient sound suggests the theme of the film using a soundtrack that relates to dancing which is what the film is based around. This could help us with our thriller film as if we used a soundtrack that relates to our film then automatically the audience have an idea of what the film is going to be based on.

Stalked at 17 - Opening Sequence

This is an example of a thriller film.
In this film we see two main characters who are seen as typical teenagers at settings such as school and parties. However the change of events between their relationship ruins their happy mood and creates a drastic change of mood and atmosphere between characters and their storyline. Half way through the film we see that the boyfriend is turning into a stalker and becoming too much for the girlfriend to the point where she is scared of him. This film shows a psychological thriller.