This document discusses conventions of psychological thriller films that will be utilized in a student film trailer project. It covers how lighting and shadows can represent a character's inner darkness and add mystery. Mirror scenes are discussed as a way to indicate a protagonist's twisted nature, though they can be difficult to film. Costumes aim to show how a normal person can become corrupted, rather than portraying villains as overly stylized. Locations in urban areas can make the story feel closer to home for viewers. These mise-en-scene elements will help craft an unsettling trailer that draws on thriller conventions.

1. Reece Perrin

2. Introduction
 This research was carried out to gain an
understanding of the codes and
conventions of a psychological thriller
(with horror tendencies) and to utilise
them in preparation for my trailer.

3. Lighting & Shadows
 The use of shadows is a clever way of representing a
characters inner darkness and more sinister capabilities. By
cutting out the actual person but maintaining their dark figure
the audience are aware they are in the scene without having
them in front of the camera, adding mystery and suspense to
the shot. The use of low-key lighting adds physical darkness to
the actual scene (rather than playing on the psychological side
of it) which correspondes to the actual narrative happenings
(dark story, dark scene). I plan to shoot a fair amount of my
trailer in the dark to connote a dark, twisted feel to the trailer.
However, due to the darkness it might be hard to achieve a
clear shadow, so added lighting features such as background
lights and perhaps even torches will be used to try and produce
a clear shadow that my camera will easily film. A lot of the
shadows and darkness will be featured arond the times Chris
makes an appearance just to subtly hint at Chris turning nature.

4. Props
 Mirrors tend to be a key feature in many
psychological thrillers. They represent a reflection of
someone's inner attitudes. A mirror scene could
perhaps be the scariest and most intimidating scene
of a feature as it can indicate the sheer twisted-ness
of to protagonist/antagonist and would put across
how dangerous this person could actually be. A
mirror scene can actually prove difficult to film,
especially for amatuers like myself, I have to get a
clear shot of our twisted subject (most liekly Chris in
this case) whilst keeping the camera out of the
reflection. This could be briefly used in the trailer but
nothing would be stretched out because a mirror
scene could be scene as a cliché and could easily
and quickly become tedious.

5. Clothing & Costume
 In a psychological thriller an antagonist (Chris, who
could be scene as my protagonist) is usually seen
wearing smart clothes such as suits or dresses. This
would give the villain an air of authority, which the
audience could assume will be utilised in a sinister
manner. However, in order to maintain the idea that
Chris is a normal person who becomes corrupt
through his interactions with love interest and
deceased girlfriend lookalike Candice, we need to
keep him in casual clothing. This will register to the
audience as normal and could be more intimidating if
they assume that any normal person, in reality, can
become this twisted. Chris will most likely be seen
wearing jumpers and shirts paired with jeans to
maintain this thought.

6. Location
 Location can differ depending on the
context of the film. My trailer will most
likely be set in urban London around
dark corners, alleyways, Chris'
flat/house and perhaps bedsits. Using
these sets will present the audience the
idea that, due to the products urban
nature, this could happen close to them,
which could be more fear evoking if I
present it as a subject closer to home.

7. Conclusion
 These elements of Mise-En-Scene will
help contribute to the forming of my
trailer and will detail it even further and
will give me (and my group) more
conventions to analyse and explain for
my upcoming evaluation.