CAMERA
SHOTS/MOVEMENT AND
EDITING CONVENTIONS
OF THRILLER FILMS
Ellie Lovatt
Camera shots + movement
These typical conventions help to give the film
its thriller ‘feel’, as different camera angles
create different senses of emotion and body
language. To do this, shots such as close-ups
are used quite frequently as a way to portray the
emotions of characters much easier.
Movement
Some camera movements sometimes help
make the film feel more intense, and can make it
seem much more realistic to the viewer. An
example of this would be the movement of the
camera of a bad character point of view to make
it look as though they’re following them etc.
Editing
Different conventional editing techniques can
help the film develop a much more intense
atmosphere for the viewers. An example of
these editing techniques would be quick cuts,
used to make the scene much more fast paced.
Another example would be fade to black. This
fade to black is commonly used at the end of
intense scenes to dull them down. When the
scene fades to black, it adds an element of
mystery as the viewer isn't aware of what is
going to happen next.