HOW DOES THE MICRO ELEMENT OF SOUND INFLUENCE A FILM , IN THE THRILLER GENRE, FOLLOWING THE CODES AND CONVENTIONS WHERE APPROPRIATE.

BETH POULTER

WHY DID I CHOOSE THIS QUESTION?

I chose this hypothesis because I firmly believe that films of the thriller genre are mainly noted on their gripping storyline and outstanding plot twists, however I think that the element of sound plays a substantial part when conforming to conventions of the thriller genre. Therefore I have chosen particular pieces of research to help prove my hypothesis to be correct.

I have chosen 3 focal films to focus on how sound is used in the thriller genre and the importance of it. I tried to choose films all from different epochs of the genre, with Psycho being from 1960, Red Dragon from 2002 and then Taken in 2008 and how the use of sounds changes yet still remains to the thriller genre.

HITCHCOCK, ALFRED. 1960. PSYCHO. SHAMLEY PRODUCTIONS

This is my main focal film for my research portfolio, as the director- Alfred Hitchcock is labelled as the 'father' of the thriller genre, a lot of his stylistic elements being replicated and used in various other more modern films of the thriller genre.

RATNER, BRETT. 2002. RED DRAGON. UNIVERSAL PRODUCTIONS

The second of my focal films, Red Dragon, was released 52 years after my main focal film, the huge time gap between the two films will help to distinguish the type of sound used as time has passed and how it has differed, using it as a comparison as to what works best and which best suits the genre.

MOREL PIERRE. 2008. TAKEN. EUROPACORP.

The third film of my focal films is the most modern of the selection, this again will help me to compare and distinguish how sound has influenced thriller films as the years have progressed.

HOW MY FOCAL FILMS HELPED MY RESEARCH…

After choosing my three focal films, I selected a clip from each and analysed them to seek how they fit into the thriller genre. Each of my focal films used sound in different ways, so this gives me a variation to study and more option as to what fits to the thriller genre to the best standard.

PSYCHO – CLIP ANALYSIS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WtDmbr9xyY

RED DRAGON- CLIP ANALYSIS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbiDj6vJfug

TAKEN- CLIP ANALYSIShttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZOywn1qArI

CHANDLER, DANIEL,1997. ‘AN INTRODUCTION TO GENRE THEORY’.

This piece of research will help to gain an understanding of the thriller genre, and the origin of genre and how I can incorporate it into my short-filmed piece, using theorists to explore how I can work within a genre, specifically the thriller genre.

ALTMAN, RICK. 1998: “REUSABLE PACKAGING: GENERIC PRODUCTS AND THE RECYCLING PROCESS.” REFIGURING AMERICAN FILM GENRES. ED. NICK BROWNE. BERKELEY: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS. 1-41

The use of piece of research is to assist me with the understanding of the psychothriller genre, with Psycho being one of my focal films, it states how Psycho is “the film that transforms the genre's formula and instigates the progressive/subversive character of horror films”

ROSENBERG,JOHN.2010.THE HEALTHY EDIT: CREATIVE EDITING TECHNIQUES FOR PERFECTING YOUR MOVIE. TAYLOR & FRANCIS

The use of this piece of research will help me in my portfolio with the editing side of things, it is full of appropriate information which will help me fit to the genre of my planned short film.

DANNY DRAVEN .2013.GENRE FILMMAKING : A VISUAL GUIDE TO SHOTS AND STYLE FOR GENRE FILMS. TAYLOR & FRANCIS

This piece of research gives me a guide to give me an insight as to what shots are most common and most influential in the thriller genre, it gives examples of the type of shot, what is looks like, how its done and when it should be used. This will assist me when I’m shooting my short film, when I’m choosing what shots are best for my film and the certain situation that I am trying to portray. 

HOW MUSIC CAN CHANGE A FILM-

HTTPS://WWW.YOUTUBE.COM/WATCH?V=RN9V0CN4NWS

Shelleycanada, 2012. ‘How music can change a film’. Accessed at 10:53 am on the 13th of January 2015 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rn9V0cN4NWs

This video from YouTube, shows the direct influence that sound can have on the audience, when changing the sound on a certain scene- the whole thing changes and creates a different environment. It completely changes the effect of the acting, the storyline and the setting of the film, just by the sound being changed.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SOUND-

HTTP://FILMBASE.IE/THE-IMPORTANCE-OF-SOUND/#.VLFHNWRG5YV

Unknown Author. Unknown Date. ‘The importance of sound’

Accessed at 14:00pm on the 15th of January 2015:

http://filmbase.ie/the-importance-of-sound/#.VLfHNWRg5YV

The use of this piece of research shows the importance of sound in the movie industry and the impact it has. It states how movies wouldn’t be the same without its iconic sound motif, such as the famous motif used in Steven Spielberg's 1975 blockbuster; Jaws.

“PICTURES SPEAK TO THE INTELLIGENCE. NOISE SEEMS TO BYPASS INTELLIGENCE AND SPEAK TO SOMETHING VERY DEEP AND INBORN….” – ALBERTO CAVALCANTI

(‘SOUND IN FILMS’. FILMS A QUARTERLY OF DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS V.1, N.1 [NOVEMBER 1939] , 25-39, CITED IN KRACAUER 124)