Thriller Research - Camera Codes

Codes – camera, editing, mise-en-scene, sound, lighting
Camera

• ECU: these shots are taken from a fairly large distance which generally show the setting of the scene and often they are often an exterior e.g. outside of a building.
• LS: This shot shows the entire human body, with the head at the top of the frame and feet at the bottom. A fair amount of background detail is still in the shot.
• MS: Contains usually half of the human body, often in dialogue scenes. They are usually part of a two-shot as well.
• CU: Very little background shown, focus on either a face, or a specific detail of the mise-en-scene. Often shows the important of the object, allowing the audience to understand the emotions or reasons for the actions.
• ECU: Only shows something such as the mouth or eyes, with no background detail, used for dramatic effect.

The most common camera shots used in thrillers are mid-shots and close-ups, they create tension and anxiety within the narrative.

Camera Angles

• Bird’s-eye view: positioned directly overhead, causes audience to look down on the action in a superior way.
• Eye Level: positioned at eye level of the audience.
• Low Angle: positioned low, increasing the height inspiring fear, as the audience is dominated by a large figure or object on the screen.
• High Angle: scene shown from directly above, makes the object seem smaller and less significant.

Low angles and high angles are used throughout thrillers to change the significance of the character, a protagonist are often filmed using a high angle, as it makes them seem less powerful and dominated by the antagonist who is often filmed using a low angle.

Camera Movement

• Zoom: The subject is magnified, and attention is concentrated on details previously invisible as the shot tightens. It may be used to surprise the viewer.
• Following pan: The camera swivels to follow a moving subject.. A pan usually begins and ends with a few seconds of still picture to give greater impact. The speed of a pan across a subject creates a particular mood as well as establishing the viewer's relationship with the subject.
• Surveying pan: The camera slowly searches the scene: may build to a climax or anticlimax.
• Tilt: A vertical movement of the camera - up or down- while the camera mounting stays fixed.
• Crab: The camera moves (crabs) right or left.
• Tracking (dollying): Tracking involves the camera itself being moved smoothly towards or away from the subject. Tracking in draws the viewer into a closer, more intense relationship with the subject; moving away tends to create emotional distance.
• Hand-held camera: A hand-held camera can produce a jerky, bouncy, unsteady image which may create a sense of immediacy or chaos. Its use is a form of subjective treatment.
• Process shot: A shot made of action in front of a rear projection screen having on it still or moving images as a background.

Tracking and panning shots are often used at the beginning of thrillers, to introduce the setting to the audience. Zoom shots may be used to surprise the audience and create more tension.

Editing

• Cut: Sudden change of shot from one viewpoint or location to another. On television cuts occur on average about every 7 or 8 seconds.
• Matched cut: In a 'matched cut' a familiar relationship between the shots may make the change seem smooth:
• Jump cut: Switch from one scene to another which may be used deliberately to make a dramatic point. Sometimes boldly used to begin or end action. Alternatively, it may be result of poor pictorial continuity, perhaps from deleting a section.
• Motivated cut: Cut made just at the point where what has occurred makes the viewer immediately want to see something which is not currently visible.
• Cutting rate: Frequent cuts may be used as deliberate interruptions to shock, surprise or emphasize.
• Cutting rhythm: A cutting rhythm may be progressively shortened to increase tension. Cutting rhythm may create an exciting, lyrical or staccato effect in the viewer.
• Cross-cut: A cut from one line of action to another.
• Cutaway/cutaway shot (CA): A bridging intercut shot between two shots of the same subject. It is often used to shortcut the passing of time.
• Reaction shot: Any shot, usually a cutaway, in which a participant reacts to action which has just occurred.
• Insert/insert shot: A bridging close-up shot inserted into the larger context, offering an essential detail of the scene.
• Buffer shot (neutral shot): A bridging shot (normally taken with a separate camera) to separate two shots which would have reversed the continuity of direction.
• Fade, dissolve (mix): Both fades and dissolves are gradual transitions between shots. In a fade the picture gradually appears from (fades in) or disappears to (fades out) a blank screen.
• Superimpositions: Two of more images placed directly over each other (e.g. and eye and a camera lens to create a visual metaphor).
• Wipe: An optical effect marking a transition between two shots.
• Inset: An inset is a special visual effect whereby a reduced shot is superimposed on the main shot. Often used to reveal a close-up detail of the main shot.
• Split screen: The division of the screen into parts which can show the viewer several images at the same time. This can convey the excitement and frenzy of certain activities, but it can also overload the viewer.
• Stock shot: Footage already available and used for another purpose than the one for which it was originally filmed.

Jump cuts are a commonality in thriller films as the high-speed action makes it harder for the audience to concentrate on all the action, the jump cuts allow the audience to make assumptions about the plot and characters, with a high cutting rate creating suspense, often used in the openings.

Sound

• Direct sound: Live sound. This may have a sense of freshness, spontaneity and 'authentic' atmosphere, but it may not be acoustically ideal.
• Studio sound: Sound recorded in the studio to improve the sound quality, eliminating unwanted background noise.
• Selective sound: The removal of some sounds and the retention of others to make significant sounds more recognizable, or for dramatic effect - to create atmosphere, meaning and emotional nuance.
• Sound perspective/aural perspective: The impression of distance in sound usually created through the use of selective sound.
• Sound bridge: Adding to continuity through sound, by running sound (narration, dialogue or music) from one shot across a cut to another shot to make the action seem uninterrupted.
• Dubbed dialogue: Post-recording the voice-track in the studio, the actors matching their words to the on-screen lip movements.
• Wildtrack (asynchronous sound): Sound which was self-evidently recorded separately from the visuals with which it is shown.
• Parallel (synchronous) sound: Sound 'caused' by some event on screen, and which matches the action.
• Commentary/voice-over narration: Commentary spoken off-screen over the shots shown. It may be the voice of one of the characters, unheard by the others.
• Sound effects (SFX): Any sound from any source other than synchronised dialogue, narration or music.
• Music: Music helps to establish a sense of the pace of the accompanying scene. The rhythm of music usually dictates the rhythm of the cuts. The emotional colouring of the music also reinforces the mood of the scene.
• Silence: The juxtaposition of an image and silence can frustrate expectations, provoke odd, self-conscious responses, intensify our attention, make us apprehensive, or make us feel dissociated from reality.

Non-diegetic sounds and sound bridges are used throughout thriller films. Non-diegetic sound creates a dramatic effect, and informs the reader what the film may be about. Sound bridges are used to make the action still seem present when it's not visible, meaning there is no suspense and anxiety lost.


Lighting

• Soft and harsh lighting: Soft and harsh lighting can manipulate a viewer's attitude towards a setting or a character.
• Backlighting: A romantic heroine is often backlit to create a halo effect on her hair.

Mise-en-scene

• This refers to all of the things which are 'in the scene'.
• The setting and props; people and how they move, look and dress; and abstract design principles in the frame, such as colour, line, shape and plane.

Thrillers are often set in either the busy urban area, or a secluded country side area. The lighting is often dark and dull, portraying danger and suspense. The appearance and clothing worn in thrillers is dependent on the plot of the film, they may differ from naturalistic looks, to heavy dark make up. Typical colours are colours such as red symbolising blood and danger.

Character – what characters are introduced?
Often, in the opening of a thriller, the main characters are introduced, often the protagonist and antagonist. This allows the audience to create an opinion on the character before the narrative begins.

Are openings important? Why?
The opening of any film is extremely important; depending on the quality of the opening the audience will want to watch the rest of the film. The opening is the very first insight into the film that the audience will see; the short two-three minutes sets up the audience’s expectations, and informs them of what type of film they’ll be watching. In the case of a thriller, it enlightens them into whether they’ll be watching a film based on criminals, romance, psychopaths etc. It also informs the audience as to whether they characters are psychopaths, assassins, terrorists etc.