In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products ?

By Anthony Richards

The first frame is the title of the film. It appears at the end of the sequence, allowing the opening sequence to build tension before dramatically cutting away to the title, leaving the questions that the rest of the film can pick up on. “Following” is a title that suggests the subject matter of the film and also creates a sense of ambiguity intended to unsettle the viewer. This technique is typical of thrillers e.g. Misery.The second frame showcases the setting of the film. The setting was chosen because of its relative anonymity, enhancing the ambiguous feel. This type of wide shot is typical of thrillers because it allows the viewer to see the location of the film more widely as well as better locating the film in the real world. A generic sense of place is utilised in films like Fight Club and The Matrix.The third frame displays clearly the costumes used in the sequence. The protagonist (left) wears darker clothes to show his moral ambiguity, while the antagonist is dressed in bright colours - red to signify the danger he poses to the character. He wears a hoodie so that his face is hidden, playing on fears of the unknown and adding a sense of mystery to his character. This challenges audience expectations because they normally expect he protagonist to coloured distinctively in clours such as white to emphasise his purity. A sense of moral ambiguity is seen in many thrillers and suspense films for example the character of Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon. The antagonist, however, conforms to audience expectations by wearing a hoodie – typical clothes for a stalker/criminal figure as is portrayed in the sequence.

The fourth frame is an example of how characters are introduced in this sequence. The antagonist’s defining trait is watching and this can be seen in his introduction – an over-the shoulder shot of him surveying the protagonist. Through this, the audience is drawn into the antagonist as they too are voyeuristically watching the scene play out. Hitchcock was a proponent this technique as seen in his thriller Rear Window and spy films such as Skyfall.

The sixth frame represents the camerawork and editing typical of the sequence. The frame is a long POV shot, showing the audience the antagonist’s perspective, while the protagonist is walking into the sunlight, showing his prevailing goodness. This type of long shot is often seen in thrillers such as the films of Alfred Hitchcock.

The ninth frame shows the style of the title and the font used. It was deliberately made minimalist so it did not distract from the visuals of the film. This method is common in thrillers that attempt to create a slow buildup like Psycho.

The seventh frame is the opening shot of the film and serves to set up the story of the film. This is done through the main protagonist (right) receiving a text message. The audience does not hear the exchange and so is left wondering what occurred and why he leaves quickly in the next shot. This opening

technique (in medias res) is a feature of many films in the thriller genre including Memento and The Usual Suspects.

The eighth shot is an example of how the opening sequence suggests genre. In this shot, it can be seen that the main antagonist is following the protagonist. This is a very common trope of suspense of thrillers, especially crime thrillers such as The Departed and the Bourne series

The fifth frame shows the special effects shot of the sequence. This was done to make it clear to the audience that something strange was happening. The effect also helps to create atmosphere as it makes use of

shadows and light. David Fincher uses special effects to heighten atmosphere in films like Fight Club.