Audience Profile

This is a poster I've created for our film

In the poster, I’ve included a large, central snapshot from the film. The image is of the victim in the film, with a particularly frightened expression. It is slightly blurred, giving the impression of motion, and creating a sense of fast-ace amongst the image. This reinforces the action-like theme, which my research showed as the most popular theme amongst the target audience. This would help to attract that audience further.

I’ve made the edges of the photo darker. I did this to emphasize the darkness of the film, both in mise en scene and character personality, which would attract the audiences who enjoy films of a dark genre, and particularly the thriller theme.

I used red writing set against a black background, immediately indicating the sense of danger, thus reinforcing the genre. The words, written over the image, ask a question to the viewer, which creates a cliff-hanger increasing the sense of intrigue and drawing the viewer in.

I’ve included awards on the poster. They’re awards for independent film festivals, and also a short film competition. A young audience may be attracted to this award, as they may have heard of the competition, be interested in film making, or have entered the competition themselves. 
Our thriller film is an independent film, not just because we used unknown actors and no special effects, but because of the more psychological theme. The main influence of our film was “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” by Niels Oplev, which is an independent thriller film from Sweden.

The sub-genre of our thriller film is crime, which would appeal to many audiences both our young target audience and older audiences. It would appeal to people who would watch such mainstream media texts as CSI, Ocean’s 11, Public Enemies and other crime films involving stealing, as well as independent thrillers such as Red Road.

We used only city locations in our thriller, so as to address a modern day audience. We felt that setting a thriller on crime in a city location was best to emphasize the sense of fear and anxiety within the audience, not just the characters. We felt that audiences who live or work in the city would be able to relate to the anxiety and paranoia that the victim characters portrayed, as the fear of theft (of possession and identity) is common in 21^st century cities.

The audience of our thriller film would be of the 16-24 age group. The film would target students, part-time workers, and the unemployed in particular, because the characters within the film are all of this age and social class. In this way, the film would directly address these types of people.

Our film represents young men, of the male character’s age, as thug-like and dangerous by the character Will Block as he targets and mugs young women. It reinforces the somewhat stereotypical view of teenage boys as criminals and uncaring. Females are represented as strong and independent by the character Scarlett Fraser, as she fights back against the male mugger. This reinforces the progressive view of female characters in film, and therefore challenges the traditional use of females in film.

As well as these representations, our film targets the problem of unemployment amongst young people, and the social issues that this problem creates. Thus, the film addresses a common problem amongst the target audience and therefore is something they can relate to.

The narrative of our thriller film is based and focused around the character Will Block, as the opening introduces the obsessive behaviour of his personality. The narration includes a flashback of Will Block which identifies his behaviour as money-focused, and helps develop the picture of his jealous personality. The action focus occurs when the first mugging takes place. 

Soundtrack choice

This is the soundtrack chosen for our thriller opening. We chose this because it creates an eerie sensation it adds to the action. We also really liked the modern, electrical sound it has. It makes it very contempory and unnatural.


This is another soundtrack that we considered. We liked the thrilling, creepy effect it has, but it wasn't long enough and didn't match the action as well as choice 1.


This is another soundtrack we considered for our thriller. We really liked the high pitch sounds with the low pitch sounds running all the way through it. We felt it made the thriller feel much colder. We chose choice 1 over this because of the exciting climax it had in the middle, which matched with the action of our thriller very well, whereas this soundtrack didn't have the same climax and was the same all the way through.

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 7

Question 7: Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Since the preliminary task, I have progressed a great deal in the making of my full product. In regards to the performing and shooting, what I have most learnt since the preliminary task is the planning. When planning for the full product, I was much more thorough in planning the details of the shoot.

As well as this, the shooting of the film progressed a lot from the shooting of the preliminary task. The group put a lot more time into the shooting, and was more aware of the time in which we shot the scenes as well as the control over the environment (noise level of other people/ cars, amount of other people around etc). This was because of the problem with background noise that we had during the shooting of the preliminary task.

The editing of the full product progressed considerably since the preliminary task. I used the effects that the software offered to much greater affect, and appropriately to reinforce the thriller genre. I was able to adjust sound levels, colour and length of clips more than I was when editing for the preliminary task.

I’ve learnt that working in a group produced much more ideas than working alone. When one person in the group suggested an idea, the rest of the group were able to produce similar ideas or develop that idea. This is one of the main benefits that I discovered about working in a group. I found that this helped a great deal when coming up with the original ideas, the planning, and identifying an appropriate soundtrack. I did, however, learn that working within a group meant that decisions took longer to make as it had to be agreed with by the entire group, and this elongated working time.

My individual contributions to the planning were some of the ideas in the storyline, identifying the locations, the creation of the shot list, the character designs and the costume designs. To the shooting of the film, I contributed to most of the camerawork and the directing. I produced my own version of the final edit, separate from the other 2 members of the group, and so I decided upon my own narrative structure, which shots to use, the cutting of shots, the sound adjustment, the transitions, colour and shot-stretching effects, and the addition of a flashback scene. 

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 6

Question 6: What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

I have developed my technological knowledge considerably during the process of creating my film. Before, I had rarely used digital film cameras and so this new experience enhanced my knowledge of the technologies. I discovered how different it is to use digital film cameras to using still cameras, both in the way they work and the photographic effects they create. Aspects of the camerawork I’ve learnt from this experience are: modes of use, replaying footage, using the tape, using the camera with the computer.

I’ve also learnt a great deal about camera angles, shot types and movement of the camera. In particular, I’ve discovered how effective tilt shots can be in creating a distorted and confusing image, such as this shot from “The Third Man” which connotes disorientation and a kind of vertigo, thus placing the audience with the character. 

I used this same shot type to the same affect. The tripod, as part of the equipment, aided with this shot.

I’ve learnt a great deal about editing films from this project. I learned the importance of sequencing shots to create the narrative structure, as I used this a lot to change and develop the original narrative structure.  I also learned how to cut the shots I used to make them fit into the sequence and to create a better effect. Using different effects is another aspect that I learned a lot about, such as using transitions and changing the colour of the footage, as well as the addition of slow-motion of certain shots. I also learned where it is best to use these effects within the film. I learned how to adjust the sound within the film, which was particularly useful to me when dealing with different sound mixes such as the loudness of the skateboard and the beeping of the buttons. I learned that I could put points within the shots in which I could adjust the volume without having to adjust the volume of the entire clip. Adding music to the film was another point that I learned.

 Adding titles to the film was important. I learned where to place them on the image, how long they should last for, the colour and font of the writing and which information was important to add (such as cast names and director). 

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 5

Question 5: How did you attract/address your target audience?

The audience is attracted to my thriller by the use of similarly aged characters that can be related to. The characters’ attitudes may be appealing to the audience as teenagers of the same age may be able to understand them. The audience can also identify with the characters and issues such as theft and mugging. The film also communicates what it is like for ordinary people living in contempory Britain.

Another aspect of the characters that might appeal to the audience is the costume. The three characters wore different types of costume: Eve White in recognisable high street fashion, Will Block in a costume associated with skateboarders; hooded jumper, jeans and trainers, and Scarlett Fraser in a costume that connotes the “gothic” or “emo” style, for example the leather jacket, hooded jumper and skinny jeans, suggesting she has an edge.  

The city location would address those in the target audience that live or work in the city. It might reinforce their views of what a city is like. The British city location would be familiar to the British audience.

The cliff hanger at the end of the thriller opening would encourage the audience to watch further into the film. They would want to know whether the same situation would occur for Scarlett Fraser, or if she would challenge and defeat Will Block.

The research I conducted previously indicated that my target demographic of 16 – 24 year olds enjoyed the action genre. The pie chart below shows ‘action’ scoring highly amongst the participants. 

Following this, I conducted a short study on 10 non-media students, ranging from the lower age of my target audience (16) to older audiences. I asked them to view my film, and then give a rating out of 10 on 5 separate aspects (music, costumes, location, editing, and how well they understood it). Below are my findings:

The results show that the lowest score was an average of 8, and the highest score was an average of 9.2. This shows how the audience were most attracted to my film. Qualitative responses from the study suggested that the aspects of mise en scene that the viewers liked the most were the ATM and underpass locations, because they felt more anxious and tense whilst the action took part in these places. 

In addition, I asked for feedback from 5 year 12 media students. The questions I asked were:

1. Was it easy to understand the narrative?
2. Did the sequence hold your attention?
3. How do you rate the camera work and editing?
4. How do you rate the standard of mise en scene, to include colour, figure, lighting and objects?
5. Is the production clearly the opening of a thriller?
6. Would the opening inspire you to watch the rest of the film?
7. Can you suggest anything that would improve the appeal?
8. Were there any aspects that you find offensive? 
9. Was there any part that you found confusing or hard to understand?
10. What were the best features of the production?
11. Does the soundtrack effectively reflect and enhance the mood and action?
12. Rate the overall production

The results from the questionnaires show a general score of 4 or 5 (out of five) for the first five questions. 4 of the students said that they would be inspired to watch the rest of the film after watching my thriller opening.

The aspects of my film that the students said appealed to them the most are the camerawork, editing and soundtrack, as well as the performances and the ethnicities of characters.

G321 Thriller film production “Thief”

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 4

Who would be the audience for your media product? 


The main audience for my thriller film is 16-24 year old, white British people. This is due to the characters within the film; they’re all within this youthful age group and ethnicity. Because of this, audiences of this age group may be able to relate to the attitudes, behaviours and opinions communicated by the characters.
Female audiences may also relate to my thriller because of the positive, strong representation of women intended by the character “Scarlet Fraser”. Evidence for such effects on audience is present for Niels Oplev’s film “The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo”, in which the greatest demographic is for females under 18.

Ratings by users on IMDB

This demographic in particular are attracted to this film because of the positive representation it provides for them, of strong, powerful and intelligent. It is this same demographic that would be most attracted to my thriller. 

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

The main distributors for my media product would be internet based. This is because it is easy to target the youth audience that would be attracted by my film, as this age group are familiar with the internet.

Websites, YouTube.com in particular, that specialise in video sharing would be a predominantly good way to distribute my thriller film. 

This is due to the website’s vast popularity, and the ease of uploading the video as it is free and simple to use. The website can also be accessed easily by smart-phones, such as iPhones and Blackberry models as well as many iPod models, which are becoming more and more popular.   

Short film competitions are a great way to distribute my thriller, because it has been specifically targeted at films such as mine. An example of this would be the British Short Screenplay Competition by KaosFilms, and Virgin Media Shorts which allows the 12 winning films to be shown in independent cinemas such as the Norwich based Cinema City. 

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The characters in my thriller opening are all of the 16- 18 age range, white and British. Because of this, my media product immediately relates and appeals to this audience, who will identify with the skateboarder and the two girls. The representations of this age group vary: they’re presented as dangerous thugs by the character Will Block, who is unemployed. This is a common stereotype of teenagers. However, Eve White, Will’s first victim is a hard working, ordinary, law abiding citizen. Teenagers are also suggested to be overwhelming in number, because the cast is made up of teenagers. This could emphasize the fear and intimidation of this age group, therefore reinforcing specific stereotypes – the male aggression and female victim.

Males are presented negatively by Will Block as he is the only male character. My media product suggests that males are greedy, obsessive and have bullying personalities. In contrast, it presents females as male prey. The character Eve White reinforces the traditional idea of women being the victims in film. She presents women as vulnerable and weak in contrast to men. However, the second female character, Scarlet Fraser, challenges this traditional view. She out-stares Will as he hovers around, lurking, waiting to pounce. The cliff hanger connotes she will outwit him and refuses to be intimidated. This character adopts a contempory femme fatale image of a strong, independent woman, reflecting the progression of attitudes towards women in society. 

Evaluation of my thriller opening: Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Eval1

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Final Shot list

Shot list:

Scene 1: Eve White using the ATM machine, with Will Block stalking her

High Angle of Eve White arriving at the ATM machine just about to put her card in

CUT TO

Close up of card going into the ATM machine

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Over the shoulder of Will looking at Eve White at the ATM machine

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Over the shoulder of Eve looking around her, suspicous that someone is watching her

CUT TO

Close up of Eve typing on the keypad

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Close up of Eve's hand going into her bag to put her purse away

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Close up of Eve walking away from the machine, putting card into her purse

CUT TO 

Close up of Will following Eve down the road

Scene 2: Flashback of Will Block in his bedroom, angry that he has no money and creating a plan to mug someone

Close up of Will on his bed

CUT TO

Medium shot of Will on bed, opening wallet

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Close up of empty wallet

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Close up of Will’s face on bed, he gets up

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Close up of Will’s face as he looks out the window. He walks away.

Scene 3: Will Block mugs Eve White in the city underpass

Long shot of Eve's feet walking/running

CUT TO

Low angle of Eve running down the ramp towards the camera

CUT TO

Medium shot of Eve looking bewildered in subway.

CUT TO

Long shot of Will rolling down the ramp fast on the skateboard
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Low angle shot of Will’s skateboard rolling slightly right to the camera at speed

CUT TO

Medium/Long shot of mugging of Eve

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Handheld shot of mugging

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Medium shot of Eve shouting at Will as he rides off, too fast to catch up with

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Close up of Eve sitting down in the underpass, head is hands, looking distressed

Scene 4: Will Block is back at the ATM machine having chosen his second target, Scarlet Fraser

Close up of Will, back by the ATM watching Scarlet Fraser

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Close up of Scarlet at the ATM

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Close up of card entering the ATM

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Close up of Scarlet as she looks at Will, suspicious

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Close up of Will, looking back at her, waiting

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Close up of Scarlet using the keypad

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Medium shot of Scarlet

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Close up of Scarlet looking intimidating

END

Thriller planning - FINAL

Thriller planning final

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Mock Exam Essay Unit G321: Independent research into the thriller genre

Cinema Survival: Compare the ways in which cinema city and Vue/Odeon attract audiences.

Cinema Survival: Compare the ways in which cinema city and Vue/Odeon attract audiences.

Over the past decade, cinema has had to change and adapt in order to survive. Cinemas, and the cinema experience, have had to become more attractive to audiences in order to compete with the new ways of consuming film that have become available to the public.

The availability of DVD has been a major competitor of cinema as it offers another way to view films other than visiting the cinema. Its ease makes it a more comfortable option for viewers, as they are able to view the films they want to view in the comfort of their own homes and as many times as they want. Often people will choose to, instead of visiting the cinema to watch a film upon release, wait until that film is released on DVD and buy it. My research supports this as it showed that a large number of people prefer to wait for the DVD release to enjoy the comfort of watching a DVD, than watching the film at a cinema. This increasing availability in DVDs means that cinema has to adapt in order to compete with DVD and attract audiences.

One example of adaptation to tackle this problem is the new partnership that Vue Cinemas has with ScreenSelect.co.uk. This particular partnership has been made to tackle the effect that DVD availability has on audience for cinemas, as it combines marketing activities from both companies in order to increase both cinema attendance and DVD rental, thus benefitting both companies. Vue has launched a new online DVD rental service called ‘Vue At Home’, involving promotions such as vouchers for 5 free DVD rentals at Vue At Home, to customers of Vue cinemas. This method has been introduced in order to increase attendance at Vue cinemas, working with DVD instead of against it.

Another competitor of cinema is the availability of film on the internet. It offers a fast way to view films after their release, and like DVD it offers the ability to watch the films in the comfort of the viewer’s home. As well as this, the films can often be watched anywhere, given an internet connection. This new technology offers an advance in the freedom of film, no longer confining it to cinema and home viewing.

They have also needed to increase their viewing experience. A lot has been done in order to modernise the cinemas. Independent cinemas have installed digital projection in their cinemas. They have done this to enable benefit from small distributors being able to distribute more copies of independent film digitally, rather than using and copying 35mm prints. This brings costs of copying down and makes it much faster and simpler.

Mainstream cinemas have also installed digital projection into their cinemas, however, in contrast to independent cinemas, they’ve done this is order to keep up with the 3D revolution. An example of this technological advancement is Vue Cinemas’ deal with Sony to install 4K projectors in its network of cinemas. The 4k projectors offer four times the resolution of full HD, thus delivering the best cinematic experience possible, giving audiences another reason to get out and visit the cinemas. More 4k projectors mean that more of Vue’s screens are able to show 3D films, giving audiences a greater choice of film.  Odeon cinemas, too, have begun the transaction to a new generation of digital projectors, in preparation for new 3D film releases. The mainstream film industry is upgrading the projectors so that viewers can watch 3D films, with a greater cinema experience, and also so that they can charge more for the 3D tickets.

It is not only mainstream films, but opera too that are requiring 3D screenings at cinemas. By introducing opera to the cinemas, a wider range of audiences can be attracted. With this increase in viewers, more money can be made as tickets often more than double in price.

Cinemas have needed to adapt their venues, to increase comfort and keep their cinemas modern. Cinema City is also an example of an independent cinema that has increased the number of screens in order to keep up with the demand for more showings, so as to attract more audiences to visit the cinema. The cinema now has 3 screens, so more people can see the films, that along with upgrading to digital projection, installing comfortable seating, the restaurant and bar, and the selling of alcohol, increase the cinematic experience for the visitors. 


Because of these features, Cinema City has an older, more mature target audience. The schedules of independent cinemas have adapted to suit audiences. Although Cinema City is part of the PictureHouse chain, it controls its own schedule. By doing this, it can mould which films it shows and when to show them around the local area. Cinema City does this because it knows more about local audiences and what they want to see. This gives the benefit of attracting the local audiences, and specifically the older target audience that the cinema has.

Research project into film audiences - FINDINGS

I intended to find out which audiences prefer which genres of film. To do this, i took all the data from both the quantitative and qualitative questionnaires, and arranged them into pie charts according to age groups, and gender. Below are the outcomes.
 

A pie chart showing the favourite genres for the BELOW 12 perticipants.

It shows that out of the 10 genres given to choose from, only 4 different
 genres were chosen. This indicates that the results with similar amongst
 this audience segment. It also shows that the adventure, comedy and
fantasy genres were the most favourite.

 

A pie chart showing the favourite genres for the 12 - 21 AGED participants.

The results of this audience segment show that comedy was the
clear favourite genre, closely followed by the action and romance genres.

 

A pie chart showing the favourite genres for the AGED 41 - 50 participants.

The favourite genre amongst this group are the science fiction and
comedy genres, closely followed by comedy.

 

A pie chart showing the favourite genres for all of the MALE participants.

It shows that by far the action genre was the favourite, followed by
comedy and science fiction.

 

A pie chart showing the favourite genres for all the FEMALE participants.

The majority favourite genre amongst this group is the comedy, followed
closely by romance.

























The research into genres produced the general trends that I expected it to.
The 12-20 aged audience favourited the action and comedy genres the most. This was as I expected. The answers to the qualitative questionnaire showed that this age group generally preferred to watch films with certifications of 15-18, as these films were specifically aimed at teenage/adult audiences. I found that the older participants of this group preferred the 18 films as they are more mature films, and that reflected the way that these people felt about themselves.
The older aged audience, 41-50, showed that they, too, preferred action and comedy films. Although this wasn't a completely unexpected result, I expected a greater difference between the results of the 12-20 group and 41-50 group. This audience also liked the science fiction genre more than the others. I predicted this audience to prefer to view the 18+ films because of higher maturity levels within the films and within the audience. However, I found that as well as this certification PG films were popular due to wanting to view family films, suitable for their children.


I also intended to find out how different audience preferred to view the films they watched. During the qualitative research, I asked whether they preferred to watch films at the cinema or at home. I split the data into four labels and presented each as a graph:

This graph shows that 5 males from all the age groups preferred to watch films at the cinema, and no males preferred to watch films at home. This is expected, as males tend to prefer the experience of visiting the cinema to watch the films they like. This might be due to the genres of film they prefer, such as action films, which produce a greater experience at the cinema than at home. When asked why they chose the cinema, the common answer was due to a greater atmosphere with the audio, lighting and quality.

Like the results for the male group, the females overall preferred to watch films at the cinema, although 2 out of the 7 females chose home. As expected, more females chose home than males. This is due to the greater comfort levels that watching films at home provides that cinemas don't. However, the majority preferred the cinema experience, like the males.

The majority of 12-21 year olds said they preferred going to the cinema than watching films at home. This result was expected due to the desire that teenagers and young adults have to get out with their friends and socialise.

This graph shows the results for the 41-50 year old category. Once again, the results showed that the majority preferred to go to the cinema than to stay at home. This contradicts my prediction that older audiences will prefer to view films at home due to lack of time with full-time jobs. Instead, the answers were as such commonly due to the general cinema experience, just like the other audience segments, but they often also chose the cinema as a way to treat their children and spend time outside of home with their families.  

As well as this, I wanted to find out how the different audiences find out about the films they watch. I did this in both the quantitative questionnaires and the qualitative research.

Although only a small amount of participants, the under 12s said that they found out about films through advertising only. This is expected, as this is really the only way for them to head about the films; they are to young to listen to the radio, read newspapers or use the internet to find out about films, and although they may talk about films with their friends, it isn't a hot topic amongst children.

This graph shows that the most popular way of hearing about films for 12-20 year olds is through TV advertising, although the data is much more spread out than that of the younger audiences. This is due to this age group having more control over what they see. Word of mouth is a popular way of finding out about films, as expected as this age group are going to share their cinema experiences with one another.

This graph shows how 41-50 year olds hear about the films they want to see. Like the results of the 12-20 year old audience, they data is reasonably spread out, with the majority saying that TV advertisement is the main way. Methods like the internet, newspaper and radio adverts are also popular in this audience as more people of this age use this media everyday.

The Beach

The Beach

Danny Boyle



Plot synopsis:

The Beach is a thriller based around the main character, Richard, who is an independant young man in search of adventure. We are first introduced to him as he is on holiday alone in Thailand. He is then, quite randomly, introduced to a psychopathic, deranged man who calls himself Daffy. Daffy later leaves Richard a map to an unknown, unheard of beach, and kills himself. Richard is drawn to investigating the beach by his desire for adventure, and although unsure whether or not to believe the deranged Daffy, takes off with 2 french strangers, Françoise and Étienne. When he, and the french couple discover that the beach is a real place, they're welcomed by a secret settlement and live there in their paradise. All is great, until Richard is broken off from the rest of the settlement and has to fend for himself. He, like Daffy, begins to lose his mind and the island plays games with his head. The whole settlement is forced off the island, and the final scene sees Richard settling back into city life, with only a picture of all the island people sent by Françoise as a reminder of his lost paradise.

In this scene at the beginning of the film, Richard finds Daffy dead in the run-down motel room, after discovering the map left for him by Daffy pinned to his room door.

This is a very generic shot. The messy bed, covered in blood, and the blood splashed across the wall is an immediate thriller identifier. It quickly shocks the audience and makes it clear that someone is dead - not just injured - as there is so much blood.

The closing of the door on the camera shows the audience that the main character, Richard, is going to be shut in the room alone. This increases tension and fear amongst the audience, and creates anxiety as it isn't yet known who killed the man or if he's still in the room.



Richard is seen walking and looking towards the body on the floor, but the camera acts as the body. The low angle shot shows the scene, including the wall with the blood and the dreariness of the mise en scene.



This shot is the first image of the dead body that the audience sees. The camera is moved in a way that shows the slow movement of Richard as he discovers the man. It also shows the view that he has. The rule of thirds applies by drawing the eye firstly to the left of the frame, to the blood stained bed, and then drawing it down to the body on the floor.



This extreme close up is used to present the bloody hand of the man, and also the weapon he used to kill himself (the knife).

The drawn picture on the wall indicates psychotic behaviour and therefore presents the dead man as a psychopath. The blood splashed over it is a generic image.





In this scene, Richard is playing a secret game with the dangerous farmers of the island as they sleep. It is clear that Richard is losing his sanity.



The non-ambient lighting used is this shot is effective by only revealing the eyes of Richard. It is in his eyes that we are able to see the insanity that he has developed, which intensifies the scene as the audience is unsure what he is going to do.



Again, the chiaroscuro lighting is used to only reveal part of Richard's face. His face is empty of emotion.



The low angle shot here shows how Richard see's himself as of higher importance and more threatening than the island farmers.  



This shot of one of the men sleeping is effective, as the high angle shot puts the man in a vulnerable position. The audience knows that if Richard attacks, he will almost certainly be outnumbered and killed by the farmers, as he has grown a false sense of immortality due to his insanity. This uncertainty of his actions increases the tension of the scene. The chiaroscuro lighting keeps the shot dark and disturbing, and the non-ambient lighting allows for a shadow of the gun that Richard is holding to be cast upon the canvas wall next to the man's head.