Psychological thriller codes and conventions

Now that I am planning my final trailer, I need to look at the codes and conventions of Psychological thrillers, and not just the trailers but the films.

Psychological thrillers are the subgenre of thriller. So they typically include:

• Low key lighting
• Shadows - represent darkness and cause tension
• Quick cut editing -to accentuate the feeling of suspense and tension
• Close-ups - to show facial expressions for audience to emotionally attach
• Behind shoulder shots - to cause tension and panic
• Eery music - to cause audience to feel concern and tense
• Twists - a reveal at the end to shock audiences (and character)

Psychological thrillers include all of the above, but there are more that apply strictly to Psychological.

The sub-genre comes from thriller but contains elements of horror and focuses more of mental strength instead of psychical.

In terms of Todorov's narrative theory, the equilibrium is when the main character's mind is at ease. Their psychological state is at the point where they feel content, so after the disruption that causes them to question motives or act strange (recognition), their attempt at repairing it is so their equilibrium is safe.

Propp’s character theory can be used to describe psychological thrillers. The Hero is the main character, the one who faces the struggle, like most films however the villain could  be a few different characters. The Villain could be the actual hero's mind or another character who is playing on the hero's mind.

Other codes and conventions of a psychological thriller are:

• Death - death or very serious injury is usually a threat to the protagonist
• Reality - the protagonist constantly questions what is real or false
• Black and white - sometimes black and white is used to emphasise binary opposites - black/white, light/dark
• Mirrors - mirrors are a true reflection of ones sense, so they are often used to question the protagonist or another characters true identity.
• Photographs - similar to mirror, they sometimes reveal something about a character.
• Flashbacks - to disorientate audience and protagonist as well as hint to secrets
• Phobias/fears - the protagonist's fears are used against them to make them feel isolated
• Feeling of 'Entrapment' - closed spaces make audience and protagonist feel claustrophobic

 Source:

Ideas for own film trailer

With the research I carried out investigating real Psychological Thriller trailers, I looked at the scenes, icons or storylines that inspired me to help with creating my own psychological film trailer.

Below is a small brain storm I created with a few different ideas for a film.

After looking at this plan and putting it into perspective with what I resources I had and what I could achieve with what I had available, I created a rough idea for my film, looking at my inspirations and the icons I will focus on.

Brief main idea: Focus on a young girl who's life is going very smoothly and life appears very normal (Barthes- events do not arouse suspicion). But then small events start to become eerie and spooky, causing suspicion to what the girl's life. Reflections start to become obscure, icons such as masks and blood start appearing in her day to day life and she is constantly questioning her own motives as the trailer goes on.

Icons: Masks, blood, obscure reflections. 

Main inspiration: Black Swan, Donnie Darko

Identifying my target audience

Here is my audience feedback questionnaire that I used to distinguish my target audience.

I chose my genre of a psychological thriller, but I needed to find out who the direct audience is for psychological thrillers were, so I conducted a questionnaire to find out what age and gender people who liked psychological thrillers were. I didn't want my questionnaire to be too obvious, so I made sure I wasn't straight out asking if the person liked psychological thrillers.

 

Here are my compiled results:

From this I found that the majority of people who class psychological thrillers as their favourite films, are female compared to males. Males seem to prefer action, comedy and horror films whereas females prefer romance, comedy and psychological thrillers. After doing further research I found that because psychological thrillers are not completely horrifying and frightening, but instead work on emotions and mental tension, females are more intrigued by the story because they feel more sympathy for the characters because they are presented as being victims. It could be argued that females are have more sympathy for others in general, compared to men.

I also found that the majority of the people who selected psychological thrillers as one of their favourite genre were aged between 16-45, quie a large range. I think that psychological thrillers can play on people's minds quite a lot and could be seen as threatening, so audiences have to be aged 16+ in case the film is too frightening. I think psychological thrillers interest people and don't particularly show a specific aged character, so the characters can be young or old and therefore the genre appeals to many different ages. Therefore I don't wish to narrow the age of my target audience to speficially young people, so my age range will be from 18-40 but can expand either side.

I was pleased to see that the majority of people said that 'tension' was a big part of psychological thrillers, because that is what I aim to include within my trailer. The most selected answer was 'mental instabilities' and 'scary moments'.

Further research into psychological thriller trailers using theory

Further research into psychological thriller trailers using theory
To grasp an in depth analysis and understanding of the psychological thriller genre, I will be looking at a wide selection of existing psychological thriller trailers and teaser trailers. I will be using the film theories I have investigated and studied to analyse these trailers to see if these codes have been used. I will mostly be focusing on Roland Barthes Action/Proairetic , Hermeneutic , Enigma , Semantic , Symbolic , Cultural codes, as well as the narrative theories of Todorov and Propp.
Not only will these help with my development of my own psychological thriller trailer, but I may also find inspiration and ideas from the selection.

The list of trailers I will analysis and examine are:
Black Swan (2010 dir. Darren Aronofsky)
Donnie Darko (2001 dir. Richard Kelly )
The Machinist (2004 dir. Brad Anderson)
Memento (2000 dir. Christopher Nolan)
Shutter Island (2010 dir. Martin Scorsese)

Black Swan (2010)

(Barthes) Barthes ‘Symbolic’ code is used in this trailer from the very beginning because of the symbol of ballet dancing in a black room. The black room connotes darkness, horror and the unknown while the white ballet dress contrasts this to symbolise purity, elegance and grace. The beginning of the trailer uses the ‘Action/Proairetic’ code because normal, everyday actions and events take place such as ballet school, preparing for a show and training. Because of the soundtrack in the background of violins in eerie tones, the tension begins to arise during this code. The scene where the main character’s reflection turns on her, therefore not reflecting her appearance, is part of the ‘Hermeneutic’ code because this event is not explained and audiences are unsure of what is going on. It also keeps the audience guessing to what will happen next, especially as the screen fades to black and the music stops .Overall the ‘Engima’ code is very important in this trailer because the audience will be asking lots of questions after seeing the trailer because nothing that they have seen makes a lot of sense

(Todorov )There is a very small sequence at the beginning middle part of the trailer to show Nina’s equilibrium as part of Todorov’s theory. The disruption comes from her being chosen as the new ‘swan queen’ as weird events and other disturbances start occurring in her life. Nina recognises this in the clips shown of her noticing the scratches on her back and sensing that the other female character has an input with her psychological disturbances.

(Propp) With the focus on Nina, is it clear that she is the centralised character of the film and in Propp’s character types; she’d be simply defined as the Hero. However, the villain of the film is not clear in the trailer because of it being a psychological thriller and the other character types are unclear. There are a few hints to the villain being something deeper than a straightforward character, hence Nina’s obscure reflection and panicked voiceovers.

Inspiration: I am really fascinated by the small clip involving a mirror, when Nina is stood in front of it, but facing the other direction while her reflection moves and does not match with her normal posture and appearance. This iconic scene really plays on the mind because reflections are meant to reproduce the exact same image that looks into it, so Nina’s reflection does not match her appearance it could mean there is something deeper inside of her causing her to be psychologically disturbed.

Donnie Darko

(Barthes) ‘Hermeneutic Code’ is used a lot throughout this trailer, because the text is not fully explained in enough detail for audiences to understand it. Even when the trailer finishes, the audience is still unsure what has happened and will need to see the film in full in hope that all will be revealed in the end of the film. There are elements of the ‘Enigma’ code being used, because audiences will be asking questions concerning the characters, because so far they do not know who the hero, villain and other character types (Propp) of the film are. The voiceover over the black visuals of an unknown voice will also cause audiences to wonder who the person is, so the ‘Hermeneutic code’ plays a very important role in this trailer.

(Todorov )The equilibrium of this trailer is seen as the town’s peace and the main character, Donnie’s, normal life. However the disruption is soon in focus within the trailer once Donnie’s mind starts playing up and weird scenes are scene. There are little hints to other people recognising the disturbances, for example the scene with Donnie’s parents and therapist talking about a ‘bunny, but the rest of the recognition is Donnie knowing he has ‘emotional problems’. Todorov’s narrative theory is not very apparent in this trailer, however this is not a criticism because the lack of narrative theory reflects the genre of a psychological thriller.

(Propp) The main character for Donnie Darko is clearly made out to be Donnie, so therefore, in Propp’s theory, he is the Hero. There are a few scenes hinting to a romantic relationship between the Hero and a female who also appears to be lost, so in Propp’s theory she is seen as the Princess. Two little clips are shown of teachers and therapists, which are hinted at being either of the Donor, Helper or Dispatcher. Similarly to Black Swan, is it not very clear whom the villain of Donnie Darko is, but with small pieces of footage revealing a huge bunny and an evil looking Donnie, the villain is not simply a normal human character.

Inspiration: This film features another mirror scene like Black Swan, but this time the character is looking into it and the camera (audience) are on the other side. I like this idea because mirrors are known to be exact, but even if a little of their reflection does not match up with the first appearance, it can cause people to worry. I also like the voice heard over a black screen, because audiences cannot see who is talking so it is up to them to discover who the voice belongs to. Without the visuals, the voice can be quite daunting and creepy, which is all part of the psychological thriller genre.


The Machinist

(Barthes) The action/Proairetic Code is used at the beginning of the trailer because the man is seen doing his usual job and living his day to day life. These questions do not particularly raise questions; however they are soon involved in his psychological struggle and weird events. Barthes ‘Hermeneutic’ code in the form of the ‘Enigma’ code is also used, because the plot of the film is not fully explained and audiences are left asking questions about the weird events occurring in the trailer.

(Todorov ) In terms of Todorov’s narrative theory, there is a hint that there is an equilibrium at the beginning of the film in the trailer, because the character is seen living his normal, everyday life however it is not clear if he is happy or healthy. The disruption occurs once weird events start triggering off the main characters psychological difficulties and he recognises these problems because he attempts to make himself better and sets off to find out.

(Propp) The main character of the trailer is obviously the Hero for Propp’s narrative theory. Even though the villain is not clear, there are hints at villainous characters through cutaways or small flashbacks to other characters. The Machinist’s Hero is seen talking to various people who could possibly be the Dispatcher, Donor or Helper.

Inspiration: I like how the film repeats lines of dialogue but between two different characters, because this repetition plays on the mind because there must be a meaning to it for it to be emphasised. Characters are heard over different visuals, creating lots of tension as well as fast cuts and an increase in music tempo in the last third of the trailer. Another part of the trailer I found effective was the use of titles over a black screen, asking questions for the audience to ponder. I think the use of subtitles, which could be worked in as the tagline for the film, are very effective as questions because audiences try to find out the answer by watching the film. Even if the tagline isn’t a question, audiences still read the words which mean that they have to find an understanding behind them or it will stay with them once the trailer has finished.

Memento

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ploSYVE0uao
(Barthes) In reference to Barthes media theory, the trailer for Memento focuses on featuring the ‘Hermeneutic’ and ‘Enigma’ code because the film does not flow in chronological order. Clips of the film are shown from all different orders and the actual events shown do not make sense because they are not put into context. The character’s intention of seeking revenge on his wife’s killer is made clear through being repeated a few times for emphasis, but the rest of the trailer raises questions for audiences because everything seen is a mystery.

(Todorov )Todorov’s equilibrium is not seen in the trailer and the other stages of his narrative theory are not all seen. It could be argued that the disruption has been his wife’s murder and the man’s recognition of this is seeking revenge. Another disruption could be seen as the man having amnesia, therefore not being able to remember people, conversations or events. Though the stages are hinted at, not much is seen.

(Propp) The main character is seen as Propp’s Hero and the Villain is hinted throughout the film but not shown. There could be two Princess character types considered in the trailer for Memento, because the Heo’s wife who has been killed is obviously at the downfall of the villain, however she can’t be saved as she has already died. The other Princess could be the other female seen in the trailer, but her intentions are not clear and it is unsure if she is good yet. The other character types are not fully explored in this trailer because not all of the characters can be trusted as they are not fully explained.

Inspiration: Like some of the previous trailers, I like the use of the voiceover over a black screen, because it creates tension by not being able to see people and audiences are unsure who is exactly talking. Like the trailer for The Machinist, a few lines of dialogue are repeated through the trailer, emphasising the importance of that piece of dialogue to the film.

Shutter Island

(Barthes) Barthes ‘Hermeneutic’ and ‘Enigma’ code are used in the trailer because audiences are confused by the mystery of the film and are unsure what the main plot is. It causes them to ask lots of questions surrounding the film, but the only way they can discover the answers to the mystery of the film is to go and see it.

(Todorov )The disruption of the text in this case is the disappearance of a woman and the two detectives recognise this and set out to discover the secret behind it and therefore restore or create a new equilibrium. A few other disruptions are seen as the characters are faced with challenges to try and discover the truth behind the disappearances on the island.

(Propp) As for Propp’s character theory, the main character appears to be the Hero as he is the central character of the film and the one who is trying to achieve the new equilibrium the most. His detective partner is the Helper because they are assisting him on his journey for the new equilibrium and discovery. A Donor of the film is seen giving help as well as a Dispatcher and other character types being hinted at. The Villain is slightly hinted at, but because the narrative of the actual film doesn’t make a lot of sense so characters aren’t quite as they appear. This is a part of the psychological thriller genre.

Inspiration: I really like the use of sound in this trailer, as it speeds up once the tension increases at the end of the trailer and is minimal to provide extra tension in scenes where audiences focus on the visuals. In small montages of flashbacks, sound is used in the form of effects like screams and eerie tones. I also like the look of a small scene after the title of the film has been showed, this extra clip features a voiceover and visuals from another scene, which together show the feel that the film gives off, tense and suspenseful.


A lot of these trailers use voiceovers to introduce the main plot, but most of the teasers feature little or no dialogue.

Media Theories and applying them to film

Theories
Roland Barthes: media theory
Barthes looked at many different codes in media texts (whether it’s literature, film or television) and he was a semiotics professor, meaning that he was paid to unravel text and write about it. He used the basic analysis of text, ‘open’ and ‘closed’, and elaborated on these theories.

Action/Proairetic Code
This is the idea of little actions that do not particularly raise questions, as they are the consequence of a smaller action. This code is used to create tension and can assist audiences into guessing what could possibly happen next.

Hermeneutic Code

Barthes’ Hermeneutic Code refers to a text not being fully explained and therefore becoming a mystery for audiences to find out about. The author/director of the text’s aim is to keep the audience guessing up until the very end, referring to the basic structure of the enigma code (below).

Enigma Code
Barthes Enigma Code says that a text involves audiences to ask questions, leading them to (hopefully) continue because they have been enticed by this mystery. This is commonly used in cold openings for films as well as their trailers.

Semantic Code
This code focuses on connotations and meanings behind certain symbols. This code is known as ‘the voice of the person’.

Symbolic Code
Even though this code is very similar to the Semantic Code, it provides a much deeper look at connotations and meanings. This code is known as ‘the voice of symbols’.

Cultural Code
This is a code that refers to anything else in the said text externally. The external body of knowledge can be anything scientific, religious, and historical.

Using Roland Barthes most famous and focused media theories, I will be looking at film trailers and whether or not they use these codes and if so, how they can help benefit me in creating my production.


Tzvetan Todorov: media theory
When looking at trailers in general (a few posts back), I touched upon Todorov’s narrative theory and how it is used in trailers.

The theory says that every media text begins with ‘Equilibrium’ where characters, setting and everything else are at a balance. Then a ‘Disruption’ comes along as a threat to the Equilibrium. The character’s ‘Recognise’ the threat of the Disruption and set out to get rid or ‘Repair’ it in hope of the first or a ‘New Equilibrium’.

I believe that this theory can be applied to trailers to a certain point. Most feature length trailers feature the Equilibrium, the Disruption and show the character’s recognition of this disruption. But because trailers can’t reveal the ending of the film (cause audiences then wouldn’t need to see the film), the trailer either ends at this point or shows the characters attempt at repairing the disruption.

I will be looking at Todorov’s theory when I look closely at psychological thriller trailers to see if they follow a similar narrative structure. If this is the case, I will be looking at how the theory is used to help my own production.


Vladimir Propp’s narrative theory: media theory

Propp’s narrative theory can also be known as the character theory, because his work looked at the significance of character types and the role they play in the media narrative. There are seven main character types that Propp looked at; Hero, Villain, Donor, Helper, Princess, Dispatcher and False Hero.

The Hero is the more often than not the main character of the text, who restores the equilibrium (see Todorov). This character type is often male, but a recent trend in the last 3 decades has seen the role branch out to both genders.

The Villain is usually the character who causes the disruption for the text.

In order for the Hero to restore the equilibrium, a Donor is often used to aid the hero by giving them something, for example advice or an item.

The Helper is usually the character to assist the Hero on their quest or journey to the equilibrium.

The ‘Princess’ is a character type that is now known more as the victim. This is the character that is usually kidnapped or most at threat by the villain, in order for the hero to save.

The Dispatcher is simply known as the character that sends the hero to the task. For most films I consider this to be a community if a large setting or population are put at risk by the disruption.

The False Hero is the character who appears to be good, until the end where it is revealed they are not on the good side.

Of course, not all of these character types can be applied in every single film. But the majority on the most part can be noticed in films.
I will also be referencing to this theory in my study of psychological thriller trailers.

Genre research: Thriller