Genre Conventions – Post Apocalytpic Thriller.
Any film Genre always has a set of rules, or conventions. For our proposed production we are using the Thriller Genre.Firstly I am going to discuss the Location in which Thrillers are usually located, normally in exotic locations, or places which are not normally used in other Genre’s of films, such as Foreign Cities, or a good example to use is Phone Booth (Joel Schumacher, 2003) where most of the film takes place in a Phone booth.Next, I am going to discuss the characters in Thrillers. The protagonists are the strong, silent underdog type, who face a stronger opposition or villain and learns from this experience. Binary Opposition plays a major part in thrillers and they are very character driven. In our project the Protagonist will be the survivor and the opposition will not take a physical form but the problems he has to overcome, emotionally and mentally. The females in thrillers usually take the place of a femme fatale or a damsel in distress, for example, Selma Hayek in Desperado (Robert Rodriguez, 1995) is a perfect example of a character who starts as a damsel in distress but as the film progresses, we as the audience see her become a femme fatale.The events in a thriller are usually on a large scale, for example, if it is a Crime Thriller, there wont be just one murder committed, there is usually a mass murderer or serial killer at large and the person who is committing the crimes is usually known from the beginning. In a Disaster Thriller the problem or threat is known about from the beginning, and after failed attempts at averting it, the characters have to survive, and then deal with the aftermath, for example The Day After Tomorrow (Roland Emmerich, 2004) In which Global Warming and Global Cooling threaten to wipe mankind off the face of the earth. Our intended project will be similair to this as it deals with the problems that mankind may have to face one day and how it solves them. Plot twists and the pace of the film play a crucial part in the making of a successful thriller film. There is nearly always an unexpected twist or turn to throw the audience off track. This keeps the audience entertained and therefore “thrilled”. The pace of the film has to be brisk to make it successful, if the film moves too slow or nothing major happens to keep the audience entertained, they will lose interest very quickly.In conclusion a thriller is the sudden rush of emotions, the excitement, sense of suspense, apprehension, and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace.Word Count: 461
Any film Genre always has a set of rules, or conventions. For our proposed production we are using the Thriller Genre.Firstly I am going to discuss the Location in which Thrillers are usually located, normally in exotic locations, or places which are not normally used in other Genre’s of films, such as Foreign Cities, or a good example to use is Phone Booth (Joel Schumacher, 2003) where most of the film takes place in a Phone booth.Next, I am going to discuss the characters in Thrillers. The protagonists are the strong, silent underdog type, who face a stronger opposition or villain and learns from this experience. Binary Opposition plays a major part in thrillers and they are very character driven. In our project the Protagonist will be the survivor and the opposition will not take a physical form but the problems he has to overcome, emotionally and mentally. The females in thrillers usually take the place of a femme fatale or a damsel in distress, for example, Selma Hayek in Desperado (Robert Rodriguez, 1995) is a perfect example of a character who starts as a damsel in distress but as the film progresses, we as the audience see her become a femme fatale.The events in a thriller are usually on a large scale, for example, if it is a Crime Thriller, there wont be just one murder committed, there is usually a mass murderer or serial killer at large and the person who is committing the crimes is usually known from the beginning. In a Disaster Thriller the problem or threat is known about from the beginning, and after failed attempts at averting it, the characters have to survive, and then deal with the aftermath, for example The Day After Tomorrow (Roland Emmerich, 2004) In which Global Warming and Global Cooling threaten to wipe mankind off the face of the earth. Our intended project will be similair to this as it deals with the problems that mankind may have to face one day and how it solves them. Plot twists and the pace of the film play a crucial part in the making of a successful thriller film. There is nearly always an unexpected twist or turn to throw the audience off track. This keeps the audience entertained and therefore “thrilled”. The pace of the film has to be brisk to make it successful, if the film moves too slow or nothing major happens to keep the audience entertained, they will lose interest very quickly.In conclusion a thriller is the sudden rush of emotions, the excitement, sense of suspense, apprehension, and exhilaration that drive the narrative, sometimes subtly with peaks and lulls, sometimes at a constant, breakneck pace.Word Count: 461
Here are some Concept Pictures i found of Post-Apocalyptic settings which have influenced our film ideas:
This picture is an initial concept art from the film I Robot 
This Picture is an initial concept art from the film I Am Legend 
This Picture is an initial concept art from the video game Fallout 3
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