conventions of a thriller opening

Conventions for the opening of a film

I have learned by watching the opening sequences to several thrillers such as Donnie Darko and Sleepless that the opening must set the scene but also keep the audience in the dark. This is the main setup for the plot so it must keep the audience tense. The music or indeed any audio must keep with the visual and be very tense and usually has a fast tempo to heighten the drama. In such films as the happening classical music is used making the film seem intelligent but many films choose to use unconventional instruments like a Theremin in order to make an odd sound that knocks the audience into a state of slight shock.

Most camera shots in an opening sequence will be unconventional usually not even establishing a clear plot or storyline. These sequences will usually be altered in order to disturb the audience removing them from their comfort zone using footage of perhaps everyday events which has been sped up or darkened or contrasted in order to create a psychological effect. When the story begins the camera will usually revert to a normal state following specific characters or objects. The mise en scene in most thrillers is a normal town or city somewhere with lots of ordinary people the purpose of this is to add an element of realism to the initial setting so that whatever incidents occur throughout the rest of the plot the audience remains with an idea of this could happen to me. Usually the films target audience is linked directly to the setting for instance if I wanted to use a film to send a message to hundreds of people in a specific area of the country I would base my film there and then make sure it was known that the events of the film affected everyone in that territory.

a short analysis of conventions found in various films that i wrote about a while ago and had to dig out of the school computers