Characters

The Characters in our thriller are vital to the story, so we had to chose actors who would be appropriate for each role.

The Kidnapper- Katherine Eck

We chose Katherine for the role as the kidnapper because we felt we needed someone with a distinct, memorable feature; this is her long, wavy red hair. This could then be used as a red herring or as a recognition device. The red coloured hair could also represent strong emotions which the kidnapper could be feeling such as love and hate. We chose to dress the kidnapper in black clothes to represent her feelings of depression, sadness, and mental illness. However, in the flashbacks, we dressed the kidnapper in a flowery dress, representing happier times. We felt having a woman as the person with power would be a twist on the thriller genre as usually a male fulfills this role.

The Mother- Clare Payne
Clare was chosen to be the mother because she is the child's mother in real life, so we felt the bond would be more realistic between them. As a mother, she should be able to relate to her character more and perhaps understand how she might feel. Her brunette bob seems motherly and homely which is appropriate for her role. We dressed her in jeans and a white t-shirt because she should come across as an ordinary mother, who wouldn't expect to lose her child. Her green cardigan worn in the house represents her caring, nuturing side and nature, which also links to the park which they later go to.

The Father- Nigel Payne
Nigel was chosen because he is already married to Clare so we thought they would have good chemistry and be believable. As he is also a father, he would be able to understand the trauma his character is going through. Nigel also wears jeans and a neutral top to look father. His balding hair suggests stress; a source of which the audience are not yet aware of in the first 2 minutes.

The Child- George Gallon, 5

George was chosen as the child because we felt thrillers didn't feature enough vunerable males; it is usually females, even in films where children are feautured such as 'Flight Plan', the child is female, so we wanted to challenge this. George's blonde hair represents his innocence and naivety. We put him in a grey hoodie to show he's just a normal child, with the grey foreshadowing the fogginess of his times ahead. His army print trousers suggest he is a fighter and will survive, and also that there may be a war/struggle in the future.

The deceased child- George Gallon, 5

We didn't have access to many blond 5 year old boys suprisingly enough, so had to use George as the kidnappers deceased child also. This wasn't a problem though, as we wanted the child to look the same to create enigma for the audience. We hoped they might wonder whether the kidnapper ever had a child or if he was a figment of her imagination, or if the child was in fact a figment of the mothers imagination. The first 2 minutes really don't give much away as openings to thrillers shouldn't. We dressed George in a colourful stripy cardigan for this to show how happy the kidnapper used to be, and imply the kidnapper may see George in his grey hoodie and think he's unhappy and that she can make him happy by taking him.