Research into conventions Miss Miller

In this blog i will be talking about how the director of 'Scream' uses conventions in the film. Conventions are elements that are common within different film genres, different genres have different conventions. For example an action film would have conventions like stunts, explosions, CGI, romantic sub-plot whereas a thriller would have conventions like; Female victim, Low key lighting, silence, unknown killer. One year after the death of Sidney Prescott's (Campbell) mother, two students turn up gutted. When a serial killer appears, Sidney begins to suspect whether her mother's death and the two new deaths are related. No one is safe, as the killer begins to pick everyone off one by one.

Murder weapon
In this film the weapon used my the villain is a knife which is very conventional to the thriller genre as its seen as a dangerous weapon and is most commonly used as a murder weapon. A murder weapon is conventional to the thriller genre as many of the murders that occur are because of a weapon which scares the audience and also creates surprise and tension for the audience as they may be awaiting the murder of  specific character. This creates a relationship between the audience and the character as a knife is an everyday house hold object which any one could grab which makes us empathise with their situation. This makes the audience feel as though as this could happen to them in their house.



Villain
In this film the villain of whom we do not know the identity of is wearing a dark cloak and a white mask. This is conventional as it creates mystery within the audience as they are unsure of whom the killer is and also allows them to have their own suspicions of who the killer is. As the killer has a mask it allows the character to develop more in the film as if the killers identity was known from the start we would know their personality and would conclude our opinion instantly whereas if the killer is unknown we cannot conclude our opinion. We can also see that the villain is wearing a black gown which blends in with the low key lighting which makes it harder for us to spot him although his white mask sticks out above the rest and frightens us when appears on screen. This creates a relationship between the audience and the character as they know that if they were in her situation thy would be just as scared and makes them feel sorry for her. 

Location
The location of this clip is very conventional to the thriller genre as we can see that the house of which the murder takes place is in a house out of the way in the middle of no where. This is used by the director as the audience expect that the victim will die and wont be able to get out of the situation they are in as no one will be able to reach the girl even if she was to call her parents or the police. This is used by many directors as although its in the middle of nowhere it is also a normal house which the audience can relate to. This will engage the audience into the scene and make them watch the rest of the film this is because the normal house gives the audience a sense of reality in which most people can relate to. This will therefore make them think about it when they get home, leaving them wondering whether its going to happen to them. In addition this also creates a relationship between the audience and the girl as they again can relate to her situation and empathise with it. 


Victim
In this short clip we can see that the director has used a blond female victim, of whom is played by Drew Barrymore, which is conventional to a thriller film as blond women are seen as stupid and gullible. She becomes more and more vulnerable to the killer as the clip goes on, and like in many other thriller films, she is put through hell by the killer. He toys with her letting her know he is outside and she has no time to run anyway. This creates a relationship between the audience and the victim as you empathise with her and feel as though you are in her situation and how traumatic it is. The women is dressed and in an everyday location which makes the scene look closer to real life and make the audience feel as though it could happen to them. 



Low key lighting 
In this clip we can also see that the director has used low key lighting in the scene, this is used by the director to create suspense and tension as the house looks as though its destine to be approached by a killer. The low key lighting also creates suspense as the audience are waiting to see what happens to Drew Barrymore. This is conventional to a thriller film as many directors like to use low key lighting to create an eerie atmosphere and to create suspense for the audience and to keep them on the edge of their seats. They also tend to use low key lighting as it creates shadows and makes the audience suspicious and aware that something is about to happen. In addition this
makes the audience in a more vulnerable position which is what a thriller is meant to make them feel.