Thriller Conventions

During a thriller film the plot usually consists of a battle whether that be physical or mental between the protagonist and antagonist when there is a disruption of the equilibrium. The antagonist is trying to destroy or disrupt peace, whereas the protagonist is attempting to find justice.

Typical Conventions:

• Low key lighting
• Quick cutting
• Shadows
• Tension music
• Changes in angles of shots
• Diegetic sound of breathing and heart beat
• Montage of shots
• Protagonist in the mercy of the antagonist

Characters

• Typically the protagonist is a brave male who seeks to restore unbalanced equilibrium
• That antagonist usually has a hidden identity that the audience will uncover as the film progresses. Often the protagonist goes out in an act of revenge for past events.

Cinematography

• There is usually a lot of close ups and extreme close ups of the protagonist character, usually to show their emotions or reactions to an event. There are usually a lot of close up of props included as important clues during the narrative.
• Shots of the antagonist are usually quick and do not reveal too much of their identity e.g. a shot of the back of them or their shadow.

Editing:

• The director will usually use a lot of jump cuts throughout the thriller because there will be a lot of things which will happen which will not make sense to the audience initially. Cross cutting is used a lot to build suspense, which is an essential part of a thriller.

Sound:

• Music is essential to determine the mood of a scene, usually thrillers will include a large amount fast paced backing music which gradually increase in pace to increase suspense and tension.
• 'Jaws' is a brilliant example of a film score that was infamous for its scare factor, the use of two notes starting from slow to fast creates a tenuous atmosphere.