Film Opening Research

Hello! My partner, Alexia, and I decided to do a film opening for our portfolio project but we debated back and forth about what genre to choose and what our film should be about. We decided to begin our research by looking at past year's projects. We found that the most intriguing film openings were part of the suspense or thriller genres because they built up the most tension to keep the audience interested, the main goal for film openings. We decided to each one of us to do our own research with suspense or thriller film openings to gather information about the genre conventions and the way the story is unfolded. The first film opening I studied is Jaws (1975) dir. by Steven Spielberg, one of the most iconic suspense films of all time. Steven Spielberg utilizes the unknown identity of the shark in the opening scene to create tension in the opening scene as well as a buildup on the music when the girl is attacked and then sucked into the water by the shark. In this opening scene, it uses the "2+2" element that gives the audience just enough information to know what's going on without giving it all away. This element is something we plan to keep in mind throughout the planning of the film to successfully create the suspense factor. We don't plan on hiding the identity of the main character, but we'll incorporate the idea of the unknown through certain aspects surrounding the character.

Another film opening I research is Vertigo (1958) dir. by Alfred Hitchcock, another iconic suspense and thriller film. This opening scene also utilizes music to heighten the tension in the fast moving scene, which beings mid-action, utilizing the "2+2" element since it doesn't give away every detail but it has enough for the viewer to understand that it's a police chase. The main focus of the film is the fear of heights, vertigo, which is instantly highlighted when the man looks down as he hangs on the roof of the building and is grown with fear. The scene uses fear to create suspense, especially since it is unresolved in the opening. As we brainstorm ideas for our film opening, we also want to incorporate the mid-action sequence for our opening scene to help create the suspense without giving everything away and keeping the audience intrigued.

As we continue to brainstorm and solidify our storyline for our film opening, we will consider all of the information gathered to successfully convey our story to our audience. We will also consider important elements such as the lighting which is essential in any suspense and thriller film, and music to build up the tension.