Research into Conventions - Miss Miller

Research into Conventions

Conventions is what the audience expect to see in a film, for example in a thriller film the audience expect there to be, death, an antagonist, victims who are weak and vulnerable and iconography such as, knives or any object which can kill. The film I have chosen to analyse is "Scream 2" this is because I think that the film contains many different conventions which I can analyse.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCkomafwLZM

Iconography - 0:42

Conventions in a thriller film can be seen in the film "Scream 2" this is evident through iconography, the audience can see this when they watch the unknown killer holding a knife, trying to stab the female victim. This is done to engage and shock the audience because they didn't expect the female victim to be hurt right in the opening sequence of the film, it was also used to show the audience what kind of weaponry the killer uses. This is conventional to the thriller genre because the audience can sense and foreshadow more deaths to come and by the sharp little knife. This helps the audience create a relationship with the characters as they wish for the female victim to escape from the unknown killer in the overcrowded cinema.  

Costume, hair and Make-up - 0:22

Another convention which can be seen in "Scream 2" is through costume, hair and make-up. This is evident when the audience focus on the type of clothing that the unknown killer wears when he is patiently sitting in the cinema. This was done to create an enigma as the audience  are unsure of who the killer is because he is wearing a mask which hides his identity. Also the audience can see that everyone else in the cinema is also wearing the same costume, which means any one of them could be the killer. This is conventional to the thriller genre because an enigma is created which then leads to a build up of suspense and tension as the audience want to find out which one of the people in the cinema is the killer and who he is (Identity). This helps the audience build a relationship with the characters because they fear for the female victim about whether or not she will find out who the killer is and if she'll have enough time to escape. 

Lighting and colour - 0:41 

Lighting and colour can help make a film conventional, this is evident when the audience watch the unknown killer pull out his knife and threatens to kill the female victim. The audience can see the mask which is predominately black, which they can infer from this that the colour black symbolises evil, unholy and sinister behaviour. This is accurate as the colour black reflects on the unknown killers personality in which all he wants to do is kill which is very sinister. The audience can also see the colour  red on the female victims hands when she touches the killers coat. The audience can infer from the colour red that death is upon the victim as the colour symbolises death and pain all of which the audience can forebode will happen to all the victims the killer will lay its hands on. This is conventional to the thriller genre because the audience can infer a lot of meanings before they even see it happen, this then keeps the audience engaged as they want to keep on watching the film to see if they conclusion will be correct. This helps the audience build a relationship with the characters because they fear for all the current and future victims which will die due to the evil acts of the killer.

Sound - 2:09

Sound can help make a thriller film conventional, this is evident through the tempo of the non diegetic background music. This is evident when the audience hear the tempo of the music begins fast paced while the victim is being stabbed on her way to the stage, then the tempo gradually gets slower and more dramatic as she reaches the stage with only seconds left of being alive, to finally complete silence when the victim dramatically dies on the stage of the cinema. This was done to create suspense and tell the story through the tempo of the music. The audience can connote that the tempo of the music mirrors her life because as the music gets slower the victim is slowly dying until it reaches a complete silence which mirrors the end of her life as it is the end of the dramatic music. This is conventional to the thriller genre because the sound plays a vital role in helping tell the story as the audience edge towards their seats waiting to see if the victim will survive. This helps the audience build a relationship with the characters as they plead that the victim escapes from the cinema so that the antagonist does not win.


To conclude, this task has helped me to further understand the purpose and how vital conventions are in films, especially in the thriller genre. In my opinion I think that the clip that I analysed was successful in creating suspense, surprise, shock and tension, which really helped the audience to be engaged in the film. I will try to take on board the ideas that were given to me during this task and try to integrate them into my own short film sequence. These include the sound techniques such as the speed and tempo of the non diegetic background music, the iconography of the weaponry that the unknown killer will use and most importantly I will try to implement an enigma through costume, hair and make-up to keep the audience questioning who the killer really is.