Research: Mise en Scene: Setting & Iconography - Mrs. Quinlan

Why is setting important?

The setting is the place in which something happens in the scene, which could be located in a city, that cause meaning to the audience as they will be able to understand what's going on in the scene. For example, the setting could be a warehouse which is located in a room, which makes the audience reflects that the setting is the bigger picture and the location is the place where actions happens. Obviously, setting vary between sub-genres. In an Action-thriller the location would be the city and the setting would be the police station. Whereas in a Psychological-thriller the location would be an Island and the setting would be a mental asylum.

SETTING EXAMPLE:

Hospital

Alleyway

Hunted House

Setting are dependent on sub-genres as a setting cannot be chosen if there is no sub-genre, as it would not make sense and the audience would no be able to understand why the location has been chosen. A setting must be chosen after sub-genre has been decided in order to make the film effective so the audience will feel thrilled and enthusiast by the movie.




The Conjuring analysis:

From the following scene we can discover that the setting is in a forest and the actual scene is located in their haunted house. The house is a symbol of security and safety but is always subverted, creating a feeling of frightfulness as the only place that we think is safe is causing trouble to the innocent characters. The use of the house in the bigger forest is to make the audience detect that the place is isolated which can suggest that the house is haunted or that unnatural actions take place. As the house is isolated there will be no help for the characters in distress, which will makes the audience feel frustrated as something terrible might happen.

Why is iconography Important?

Iconography is the objects that create meaning to the scene which allows the audience make assumptions about the character or the location. Examples of iconography used in thriller films include: guns, knives, phone, money, drugs and blood. The denotation of these objects connote danger and thrill for the audience as they symbolise death.

ICONOGRAPHY EXAMPLE:

Blood

Knife

Gun

Money

Iconography is dependent on a sub-genre as the objects used in a film cannot be selected unless the sub-genre is decided as different sub-genre require different iconography. For example, a crime-thriller will use the iconography of gun, blood and money as the theme of conspiracy and death would be demonstrated in the movie.



Face Off analysis:

From this scene it's noticeable that one important iconography is the metallic shoes that the character is wearing which suggest that he is trapped and segregated. Also another main iconography is the newspaper which makes the character seen intelligent and educated, also he use the newspaper to cover his face which could refer that he is trying to cover his identity which build a sense of mysteriousness on him. Lastly, even the use of the iconography of the ring play an important role. This indicates that the antagonist is leaving a better and rich life of the protagonist as they changed their faces, which makes the audience feel sympathy for the protagonist as he is imprisoned in this warehouse.


Conclusion:
This research was useful to my understanding as I now know how to use iconography and setting professionally. For my opening thriller I will be using different iconography such as blood, knife, and money which will be located, probably, in a warehouse to create a sense of mysteriousness and suspense to the audience. However the plot might have some changes.