Planning: Character Representation- Miss Begum

Character Representation

• Name: Lara 
• Character role: Lara will be play an anti-hero as she will be liked and hated by the audience due to her actions which can be perceived as sympathetic when she is demented, however, she can also be perceived as heartless and evil when she commits murder killing the antagonist.
• Age: 20-25
• Gender Stereotype of role: British, slim build, emotional as she is unable to control her emotions, she is also dependent as her mind controls her personality. She has a dark side to her personality as she is able to change immediately and is capable of anything.
• Costume: When she is in the mental hospital she will wear a grey top suggesting her split personality and symbolising her past experiences as negative. The audience will be able to predict and make assumptions on the anti hero's personality and actions due to her costume.  However, during the first flashback the anti hero will wear a dark colour to suggest that her relationship with her lover is not conventional and that she is having an affair. In the second flashback, the anti hero will wear a light colour to promote her innocence when she finds out she is pregnancy. In the final flashback, the anti hero will wear a black outfit consisting of a black hooded cardigan when she kills the antagonist to connote death and create suspense and anticipation from the audience.
• Hair and makeup: The Anti hero's hair will be frizzy to support her demented personality when she is in the mental institution. This will be supported by minimal makeup, however there will be mascara running down her face to highlight that she is in a state and is not control of herself. However, during the first and second flashbacks the anti hero's hair will be straight demonstrating that she is in the correct mind frame and is demented. However, In the final flashback when she shoots the antagonist the anti hero's hair will be covered and will be seen allowing the audience to focus on her facial expression understanding her feelings and emotions towards the situation. She will not have any makeup on insinuating that she is not confident about committing the murder as she knows she will face the consequences.
• Body language and facial expression: The anti hero will have an unstable posture and will be unable to stay still when she is in the mental institution, this will be supported by her facial expressions continuously changing from being happy then to angry and upset. After seeing each flashback the anti hero will react with a facial expression of guilt and regret and when she sees the pregnancy test she will evoke happiness demonstrating that she is looking forward to having her baby. During the first two flashbacks the anti hero will have straight and relaxed body language supported by an expression of happiness and after seeing her pregnancy test she will have a shocked facial expression symbolising that it the pregnancy was unexpected for her. When she kills the antagonist she will have a straight but unconfident facial expression demonstrating her mixed emotions, her body language will also be upright to show that she is serious. When the antagonist enters the room the anti hero will have vulnerable body language when moving away from the antagonist and she will have a fearful facial expression evoking sympathy from the audience.
• The anti hero will be represented as: Demented through her facial expressions and body language and her costume, hair and makeup which will present her instability and split personality. Also, she will be represented as an antagonist as she commits a murder by shooting the antagonist. Finally, she will be represented as subordinate and vulnerable when the antagonist approaches the room and the audience identify that the situation is taking place in the anti hero's mind.
• Role within the narrative: Lara is the anti hero in the thriller opening as she is seen to evoke both positive and negative emotions and feelings from the audience. She begins by evoking sympathy as she is perceived as the victim when she is in a mental institution and is being observed by a professor, she beings seeing flashbacks of her life consisting of her acting intimately wit her lover and being caught by her lovers wife, the second flashback will consist of the anti hero identifying her pregnancy and the final flashback will consist of the anti hero killing the antagonist. The anti hero will then be seen as vulnerable as the antagonist approaches her leaving the anti hero in fear and anticipation as she is helpless.
• Audience response: The anti hero will have an impact on the audiences emotions and feelings causing the audience to respond to the anti hero with fear due to her erotic, demented behaviour but they may also sympathise with her as they underatand that her mind is in control of her actions therefore perceive her as a victim of her own mind. However, during the flashbacks, the audience react differently as they envy her after seeing her with the antagonists lover. These emotions are further supported when the anti hero murders the antagonist causing the audience to feel overcome by shock and fear. Finally, when the antagonist enters the anti hero's room seeking revenge they will respond with anticipation and sympathy as they fear for the anti hero's life as they are unsure of the events to follow. Therefore, the  audience will respond in various ways towards the anti hero due to her major involvement in all the events. 
•  The anti hero will resemble the behaviour of existing anti hero's and antagonists in existing thrillers. For example, in the film 'Psycho', the antagonist is demented and therefore the audience fear his behaviour due to his fragmented mind-set, this is presented effectively to the audience as tension is created when the antagonist is shown onscreen, therefore in order for our target audience to respond in the same way to the anti-hero, she must resemble his particular traits and actions. Furthermore, the anti hero in the film 'The Devil Inside' is also demented and therefore causes the audience to respond with uncertainty and fear as they do not know what to expect from the anti-hero. Based on these representations, the anti-hero of our production will follow certain traits in order to receive the same response from the audience of suspense and excitement due to other feelings that are built up throughout.

• Name: Ivy- can be referred to poison ivy which has negative connotations as it is sharp and has a dark colour resembling her personality which is also dark and unpredictable. 
• Character role: Ivy is the antagonist of the film as she gets revenge from the anti hero when she resurrects from the dead. 
• Age: 15-20, the antagonist and anti hero are of similar ages to show how their personalities and representations contrast making them completely different from one another.
• Gender Stereotype of role: British, Slim build, Brown, long hair as the colour brown connotes darkness and danger making the audience fear the antagonist. She will also be emotionless and confident when she seeks revenge. 
• Costume: During the flashbacks the antagonist will be dressed in formal, light coloured clothing to demonstrate that she is innocent which allows the audience to relate to her. However, when she enters the anti hero's room she is dressed in a dirty white dress to symbolise how she is no longer innocent and has negative intensions seeking vengeance from the anti hero. 
• Hair and makeup: When the antagonist enters the anti hero's room her hair will be straight and it will cover her face hiding her identity making her look more frightening and building tension and suspense for the audience who are able to make predictions about the upcoming events. When her face is revealed she will have a pale face symbolising that she is dead and she will have blood in her eyes making her look more threatening. During the first and final flashback the antagonist will also have her hair straight however it will be behind her ear with natural makeup on to symbolise that she is doing a daily routine innocently. 
• Body language and facial expression: The antagonist will have a straight and upright posture when she enters the anti hero's room. This will make her appearance more frightful and intimidating for the anti hero. She will also have a straight emotionless facial expression with her eyes wide open when she approaches the anti-hero which will cause uncertainty and for the audience as they will be unsure of what the antagonist will do and what she is capable of doing.  However, during the first flashback when she witnesses her husband and the anti-hero behaving intimately she will freeze  and she will respond with an emotional facial expression with tears in her eyes suggesting that she is shocked and devastated by the unexpected revelations. During the final flashback before the anti hero commits the murder, the antagonist is perceived to have a shocked facial expression suggesting that she cannot believe that the anti hero is capable of killing her, she will also have rigid body language suggesting that she is unable to move as she is in major shock. 
• The antagonist will be represented as: Threatening and fearful when she enters the anti hero's room due to her representation through costume, facial expression and body language and the other elements of mise en scene. The audience will feel suspense and anticipation when the antagonist is onscreen due to her dominant role in comparison to the other characters. However, during the flashbacks the antagonist will be perceived as the victim as she is innocent which will evoke feelings of sympathy from the audience towards her. Overall, the antagonist will be represented as dominating and powerful making the anti hero subordinate and vulnerable in her presence.  
• Role within the narrative: The antagonist will be shown in the anti hero's flashbacks at first. She will first be seen to catch the anti hero with her husband acting intimately leading her to react in shock and desperation as she cannot believe what she has witnessed. She is then perceived as looking helpless as she is shot by the anti hero. Finally, she appears entering the anti hero's room where she tries to gets revenge and tries to take her baby from her. The final shot will make the audience feel frightened as we'll as fearing the anti hero's life as she is in danger. 
• Audience response: The audience will respond with sympathy towards the antagonist when they become aware that her lover is cheating on her with the anti hero, and they will also feel sympathy towards her when she is innocently killed by the anti hero. However, when she returns to seek revenge from the anti hero the audience respond with terror and suspense as they are unsure of what the antagonist will do. 
• The antagonist of our production will reflect the actions and appearance of the antagonists from the  films 'The grudge' and 'The exorcist'. These antagonist are both dressed in white which is unconventional and creates more tension and suspicion for the audience as they are unable to understand why they wear white due to their lack of innocence. The antagonist from 'The Grudge' also moves with slowness causing the audience fear and anticipation which is also what we want the antagonist to create for our target audience. Therefore, our female antagonist will pursue these traits and appearance in order for the audience to respond in a similar way.

• Name: Professor 
• Character role: The professor is the protagonist of the film as he has good intensions after he is perceived to be trying to find out why and how the anti hero got into her current state. 
• Age: 25-30
• Gender Stereotype of role: British, Intelligent, knowledgeable, experienced, messy hair, wears glasses
• Costume: The professor will wear a white shirt and a tie followed by a lab coat demonstrating that he is professor and is trying to solve something of importance. The white will also connote his innocence demonstrating that he is the protagonist of the film making the audience have faith in him. 
• Hair and makeup: He will have messy, short hair making him conventional to a professor which highlights that he is intelligent. He will not have any makeup on. 
• Body language and facial expression: The professors body language will be upright to demonstrate that he is serious and knowledgeable in what he does which will make the audience respond by trusting him. He will also have an intrigued facial expression to show that he is shocked and by the revelations and wants to find answers and reasons for the anti hero's mental state. When the anti hero begins to react after seeing the antagonist the protagonist has a confused and worried facial expression after he is unable to see anything highlighting that he is concerned about the anti hero's behaviour and mental state. 
• The protagonist will be represented as:  Trustworthy and considerate as he supports the anti-hero by observing her behaviour and trying to find a solution. The protagonist will be the only character that the audience will be able to trust due to him having good intensions. 
• Role within the narrative: The professor will be perceived to be on his laptop watching something which is later identified as the anti-hero, he is observing her behaviour and taking notes. The audience respond with uncertainty until they see what he is watching, after they are aware of what the professor is doing they have faith in him and confide in him to solve the anti hero's problem. 
• Audience response: The audience will respond by having faith in the protagonist due to his intelligence and they will trust him to find out the anti hero's problem and cure it. In comparison to the other characters, the professor will be the only character in which the audience will be able to rely on and will not fear due to his positive intensions. 
• The protagonist will resemble the qualities and traits of the protagonist from the film '88 Minutes' who is a Psychiatrist, this protagonist is informative and mysterious as he is not shown. Although our professor will be shown to the audience, he should also have a sense of mysteriousness to him in order to cause the audience to feel intrigued and interested in finding out more about the professor.

• Name: Max
• Character role: Anti hero's lover
• Age: 20- 25
• Gender Stereotype of role: British, tall, slim build, short hair, blue eyes. These factors make the lover attractive and make the audience understand why the characters fight over him. 
• Costume: Casually dressed with a t-shirt and jeans, the t-shirt will be of a dark colour such as black to highlight that he lacks innocence as he has an affair with the anti hero committing adultery. 
• Hair and makeup: The lover will have short hair with no makeup. 
• Body language and facial expression: He will have a relaxed posture when he is with the anti hero supported by a loving facial expression towards the anti hero, this demonstrates that he is content with the anti hero. 
• The antagonist will be represented as A cheat as he has an affair making the audience envy him for causing the problems that come after. 
• Role within the narrative: The will be having an affair with the anti hero and is perceived to be acting intimately with her. He will then be caught by his wife however he will not be aware that they have been caught as he does not see his wife. 
• Audience response: The audience will respond to the lover with resent after they Perceive him commiting adultery and his presence will create discontentment for the audience. 
• The anti hero's lover will resemble the love interest who plays 'Tom Cruise' in the thriller film 'Eyes Wide Shut' who is dressed in dark clothing to suggest his lack of innocence which also allows the audience to understand that he commits adultery causing them to react with anger towards the lover. He also acts in a romantic manner making him fit his role as a lover which is supported by his good looks making the female audience admire him as well as feeling disappointed. Therefore, our lover will resemble these qualities and appearance in order to create a similar response of anger and envy towards the lover.

Conclusion

Overall, my characters are conventional to a thriller film due to the Mise en scene elements. I have planned each representation ensuring that I have considered the colours of each characters costumes making them conventional to the thriller genre, for example the anti hero's grey top relates to her personality, their facial expression and body language, and their hair and makeup. When I create my thriller film I will ensure that I follow my plan and make the characters conventional to the thriller genre.