Research and Planning

Analysing Theatrical Trailers

Analysing The Theatrical Trailer For One Missed Call





 Camera shots: the trailer of one missed call uses a lot of close ups to establish various characters that are presented in this film, unlike the conventions of a horror trailer this trailer tends to stick to close ups rather than using different angles or movement to visualize characters in different positions. The close ups are used so that the audience can have a clear view of how characters are related to the plot of the film as well as add emotion and meaning to when one of these characters die. a lot of close ups of the main protagonist, a woman who tries to investigate the unusual deaths of her friends, are shown so that the audience will know that the trailer evolves around that particular character, furthermore the the trailer also consists of extreme close ups, however these shots are not used on characters, rather the props such as telephones and this mysterious red ball that tends to appear after a character is killed, this will raise the question to the audience as to whom or what is causing the deaths of these characters, as well as emphasizing that this object is the main antagonist of the film. However a lot of subliminal shots are embedded in this trailer, where a supernatural figure or rare being will look towards the camera, on the other hand these shots are really difficult to notice, and a replay will be needed in order to recognize this establishment. This setting establishes the theme of horror because it does not compromise the identity of the main antagonist, and therefore imprints fear on the audience.
















*Examples of various close ups used to establish characters


Sound: The sound in this trailer will work in cognition with the visual camera shots in order to establish the typical horror genre. The trailer introduces the non diegetic sound track of an adventurous tune where a happy lullaby can be distinguished and this can be heard while the trailer introduces the companies and producers of the trailer. However after the factual statistic is given, showing the number of citizens in America that receive incoming calls, the main non diegetic sound track of a constant dark lullaby followed by the ticking of a clock will subvert the trailer from what seemed to be an adventure type film to a very daunting and fearful trailer. This sound effect or soundtrack will convert from non diegetic to diegetic, and this is done through the use of props, the camera will look at a phone belonging to the character and the main soundtrack used for the trailer will be played while the phone is flashing, this tells the audience that the main antagonist is not present in a real human body but through the use of mobile phones therefore establishing the thrilling genre. 






*These are example of various subliminal shots that viewers will find difficult to comprehend, and they all appear and disappear very quickly in the sequence, particularly the one in the middle where only a small number of audiences will notice it was present

Editing: Like sound and camera shots the editing in this trailer is used to add pace and therefore gain the attention of the audience, it is also used to cut some of the pivotal scenes of the film short so that the whole film is not compromised, the pacing will also generate the thrilling genre of the trailer and this will be established after the halfway point of the trailer, where the pace of the plot increases in speed, and a lot of jump cuts are used not to add tension but to imprint fear. Again the use of editing in this trailer works with  the sound and camera shots, it will be noticeable that whenever the soundtrack of the lullaby is played, the camera will either pan, zoom into a point of interest, or conduct both actions simultaneously, making the plot of the trailer easy to follow for the audience. Furthermore the editing will increase in speed at the same time with the camera shots when they shorten in length and the soundtrack when it subverts to a thrilling and horror like soundtrack which is similar to an action trailer. This editing element being added together with sound and camera shots will establish the horrific genre.










*Example of editing, the camera jumps from a low angle to a close up

Mise-en-scene: The props that are used in this trailer will represent technology as being the main antagonist in this film or in some sense the root of the problems that are occurring to the characters present. Again using the example of the telephones that trailer focuses on through the use of camera shots, accompanied by the converted non diegetic soundtrack of the phones ringtone, followed by the dialogue of the characters when they hear themselves pass out or die over the phone, establishes the supernatural and unusual situation that the trailer introduces, therefore crating the sense of fear and making the horror genre of the film. Also the constant appearance of this mysterious bright red ball that will be found by one of the related characters in the trailer after they have discovered the body of their friend also establishes where the antagonist is originating from, assumptions could also be made that, that prop could represent the presence of the devil or some form of anti-religious theme which establishes horror because danger and annihilation is often associated with that theme.













*Examples of mise-en-scene, notice how the camera focus more on the mobile phones rather than the two characters in the background, this emphasizes the antagonism that is within modern technology.



At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
The title is not introduced to the audience until the final segments of the trailer where the climax is brought to an end and viewers are left with nothing but questions as to what will happen next, this was most probably established because creators wished to follow the codes and conventions of a typical trailer, furthermore the assumption could be made that this was done in order to have the title being the last piece of information that the audience receive so that chances of forgetting the title of the film are lessoned and further research can be done on the internet.





*The order in which these shots are presented is the same order in which they appear on the trailer, the subliminal shot of the antagonist is shown first, followed by the title, followed by the final cut.
Why are we told who is starring in the film?
The stars and actors are not introduced during the showing of the trailer, this may be because the director does not want the audience to be distracted and be more attracted to the plot rather than the actors or producers. However the names of main actors are given at the end of the film trailer where further information was given related to the producers and creators of the film. The audience is informed of the people who act in the trailer in order to attract them into watching the film, by giving info of actors who have acted in previously successful films, the trailer will automatically gain more popularity as well as interest.








*this is the shot that appears at the end of the trailer, where information regarding producers and actors is given.



How is this information given to us and why?
In between the scenes of this trailer, the use of text is used to give information to the audience, for example in the opening three seconds of the trailer the following text is given “in america about two billion phone calls are made each day” the background that this text is shown on fits the theme of the film, because it looks like the background of telephone light. This is how the information of the actors is transmitted to the audience at the end of the trailer, the directors may have decided transmit in this format so that the theme of the trailer can be sustained, adding realism or preventing from letting the audience know that it is just a film.












*This is how information regarding the plot of the film is transmitted to the audience, the background of this text looks like a the screen of a mobile phone, which adds meaning to what is being shown
What type of action do we see?
in this trailer the audience is giving a subverted and supernatural type of action where a lot of abnormal scenes are present, images and characters that seem rare in the real world will appear in the screen for a fraction of a  second, making it difficult for the audience to notice when they actually appear. again assumptions can be made the type of actions seen is quite horrific and reckless, as a lot of characters die or get killed as the trailer progresses.








*This is an example of the various subliminal shots that are embedded in this trailer, and this establishes that type of action that the film consists of.



what clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising
Again the sounds and non diegetic soundtracks used in this trailer consists of a lullaby that will convert from mystery and adventurous tone, to dark and thrilling,  accompanied by the increased pace of the soundtrack where struggle or climax scenes are shown. The point that a lullaby is used to convey the scenes where grown characters are dying is not typical, because the soundtrack would suit the situation a family which consists of a baby or a new born child. However the music gives clues that the antagonism of the film will be aimed around children, considering that the lullaby is played just before a character in the trailer gets killed.
Does the trailer come with a voice over? if so, what can you tell about the voice being used?
The trailer does not consist of a non diegetic voice over, however there is a point that has to be evaluated. Throughout the trailer the use of text will deliver messages related to the trailer, and the audience will have to read it in order to full comprehend the plot of film, for example during one of the climax scenes this question appears with the background of a telephone light “What will it sound like when you die” and when the audience is reading this text they will imagine hearing their own voice so it can be argued voice over is being used in this trailer.
Why do you think this voice was chosen, what effects does it have?
This type of diverse voice over may have been chosen purposely by the directors so that when the audience read the text and hear their own voice in their head, it will almsot feel as if they are part of the trailer, therefore being attracted to it in different ways, this could also be a method of attracting audience into watching the whole film
How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this?
comparing this trailer to a video clip which is much smaller in size in terms of time length, the speed of this trailer will tend to change pace more often compared to a clip which would typically stay on one particular pace, for example the trailer will be at normal pace in the first quarter, then increase in pace as the trailer progresses, and go back down again, then the fluctuation will continue to behave in this way until the final cliffhanging scene is shown. However overall the speed of this trailer is similar to the pace of a video clip, on the other hand a clear difference can be made between the two types of video.
What information are we given about the film?
The information given in this trailer is very restricted, only four of the main actors who are in the trailer appeared in the information slide that appeared as text at the end of the trailer. Again the plot of the trailer was fed through the use of text editing which gave the audience and idea of what the film was about.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
With the use of mystery and horror put together as a hybrid the film looks to aim at a young teen audience, the information that is given before the trailer also shows the rating that it was given “PG-13” therefore showing that the creators were aiming at that particular audience.



*This is the very first image that the audience is given just before the sequenced trailer begins to play, and this shows the type of audience that the film is aiming at.

 












*This is evidence from the pearl and dean website which shows the type of audience that viewed this film, as well as the age range


Analysing The Theatrical Trailer For Devil (2010)





The makers behind this film are Universal Pictures, MRC (media rights capital), and the night chronicles.
















We are told the name of the film displayed in this trailer a couple of seconds before the trailer ends. This is very common among trailers of this genre and theatrical trailers in general. The reason being is so that suspense can be built, and the target audience’s curiosity is not dull by immediate release of information about the film. This is a very successful technique and is used quite often. Unlike teaser trailers where even though the title of the film will most likely be shown to the audience at the end, the length of the trailer cannot build up an atmosphere.
In this trailer we are not told who is starring in the film. This is usually the case with horror trailers, as their chosen cast are not necessarily made up of big blockbuster actors. Instead they are made up of up and coming actors, or people unfamiliar to the wider audience. So there would no need to put in the trailer who the actors were as it would be unlikely for them to bring in fan base audiences. Therefore if the cast were to be made up of star actors, the reason for addressing their names in the trailer is as i stated before. To bring in and attract the actors fan base. For example viewers of a trailer with the name “Tom Cruise” popping up will be attracted to the film because they have seen some of his recent roles and know he is a good actor, and not because of how great the films story appears to be.
Information about this film is given to us almost throughout the whole trailer so that the target audience can actually gain sufficient knowledge on the films plot is. It is expected of a theatrical trailer to do so, as these types of trailer are released only a couple of months or weeks before the actual release of the film. One of the producer’s last and main chance to get their film noticed. This information appears on screen just after we are shown the producers and distributors of the film, and is displayed in the form of text. Now this is done a lot in various other trailers across many genres, but what is done different here is that they use text to actually tell a brief summary of the plot. Whereas usually the trailer would only use text to pump up the audience by saying coming soon or a phrase like “this summer – Coming to a cinema near you” and so on. In this case the text starts off with “On any ordinary day” which is fairly simple. What is interesting is how they also utilise the background to shed some light on what to the audiences. 

















*As you can see they have turn the whole scenery upside down to suggest that on this day everything is in reverse, things will start to go wrong and that something of greater power is behind it. This effect is still carried out later in the trailer with the text “Our lives are filled”- “with chance encounters” – “and random events”. 
About almost a minute through the trailer the text is no longer accompanied by the backdrop of a  city. The camera has its sights on a top of a building most likely the main building of interest for where the film will take place. The camera then zooms in passing through the walls of a building, to where the elevators are. Speed stats to pick up and texts appear more frequently as the camera races from the top floor of the building all the way to the ground as if someone were falling. After this occurs, all text after that changes size shape and colour, to fit the theme of the movie, while also falling back into the conventional “This Fall” type of phrase as the tempo of the trailer changes.

















The trailer then goes through a montage of action, disaster, and blood. Cuts are much quicker to keep people on their toes. However this is not the pace of what us the audience will see when we actually watch the film. The film itself will develop and even the parts with action won’t happen any faster as this film is a horror first. Meaning it will want to frighten people, and in order to do that, you have to let the antagonist lurk in the dark away from the audiences view to drag on the suspense. The reason for why trailers implement a tempo in the trailer which is not in the film, is show that the film does have the best of both: character development and action. While also implying that the constant cuts represent adrenaline and the fear, both in the characters, and us as the audience will experience. 
There are no voice-overs in this trailer, instead they let the mixture of short clips and music tell their own story, and it is done very well, unless you were to count in the text on screen, which are very brief and still maintain an enigma. Some of the main scenes to point out are the ones which show significance. 




Therefore a good example would be the scene in which the main characters are revealed, the people who will undergo this treacherous event. While the trailer is doing this there is a non diegetic ominous sound being played in time with what is happening on screen e.g rhythm technique.  Although nobody is telling the audience what is happening or what will happen, it becomes fairly obvious however that it has something to do with the elevator. This is because of the diegetic sound of the bell when the elevator got to their floor while they were waiting for it. That fact that everything was fairly quiet and that the elevator was singled out and made significant noise amongst all over surroundings shows how it will be an important piece of the film. On top of that, there is a slow motion effect that also takes place when the elevator arrives, hinting to the audience that the main characters or/and protagonist will make a life changing decision by getting in the elevator.
Another main scene in this trailer is when the elevator blacks out due to the buildings power having problems. Again the there is no voice-overs, and the director allows actual film footage to be played with dialogue being heard with it. In this short period we learn that one of the people in the elevator has been cut severely. This self explanatory clip provides valuable information on the plot of this movie. First that everyone in that elevator can potentially be targeted next, and that everyone one of them could be the attacker. Secondly that this was not a usual cut and that it looks like a bite mark. While lastly in relation to the film’s title, that there is some kind of super natural being behind it e.g. the devil.


After that scene, at around “2 minutes 04 seconds” the trailer goes completely silent, and then “From Universal Pictures” comes up followed by the non diegetic sound of an elevator bell. From then on to about “2 minutes 18 seconds” there is a montage of rhythm shots with the continuous elevator bell in the background ringing after every straight cut. The action of the trailer itself while this is happening involves people dying one by one. In relation to the trailer and not the film this could represent that each time the elevator bell rings, and is passing a floor of the building, the trailer shows somebody die as a result of that. This chain of events will continue happening until they reach their destination (which could be the bottom), where it will be the protagonists turn to die. 














This trailer is aimed at a mainstream audience in response to the producers of this film e.g. Universal Pictures, who make big blockbuster movies. With that in mind, this film is a horror and is aimed to get the attention of people who would most want to be scared. Meaning teenagers and young adults age 15-25, who are either part of a couple or would watch this movie in a group. Since this film’s rating has a certificate of 15, the trailer can be advertised in many more theatre screenings than if it were an 18 rated moving. This could help gain some fan base and cause viral marketing. If this film was actually aimed at couples the trailer would be advertised in screening for films categorised in the romance genre, where couples may see this trailer and find it interesting film to watch on a date. For the male audiences, the trailer may be shown before a 12 rated action movie. However all this being said, this film does not seem like a mindless horror that just appeals to male teens by including a range of young female actresses being killed off. Instead the trailer has forms of complexity about it, ending the trailer with one last enigma when the screen fades to black and a character in the film asks “Who are you?” leaving the audience with the same question even though the answer is in the trailer. Just before the trailer ends we see a quick shot of the antagonist looking demonic with its face disfigured, leaving the audience puzzled. 









Analysing The Theatrical Trailer For Horsemen







Camera shots: The use of camera shots in this trailer will represents various elements of the film that is being advertised. The main tools that are used are extreme close ups and they highlight important evidence that gives the audience an idea of what the plot of the film consists of, an example of these extreme close ups will be in the opening few seconds where a character opens the cover of a silver platter to reveal rotting teeth  covered in blood, evidence of brutality and insanity, which will establish the genre of the film. The length of each camera shot used in this trailer varies from second to seconds, some scenes and shots are longer to fit in dialogue, this may also have been done in order to establish meaning to the characters being represented and their meaning. the trailer also follows the typical conventions of a horror film because it has a wide mixture camera shots that enable the audience to view characters from different points of view, particularly protagonist being portrayed as weak and afraid, while antagonists are being portrayed as 

authoritative and scary. An example from this can again be taken from the opening scene where a character unaware of what is under the cover, removes the platter to find teeth, the shot is taken at very high angle and it represents the minority of the character.







*These are examples of close ups and extreme close ups used in the opening seconds of this theatrical trailer.
Sound:  The non diegetic sounds used are typical of a trailer, they are used to increase the tension of the scene through the use of an increasing heartbeat that continues to go up in pace as the intensity of the scene increases, an example of this can be taken from the third scene that the trailer reveals, where the main protagonist of the film trailer stumbles across a horrifying clue, where one of the suspects whom he thought to be innocent was indeed violently related to the murder, all of this tension was enhanced with the use of the increasing heartbeat as well as a typical one liner used by a character in film, where the suspect says “Im sorry” which increases the tension of the trailer prior to the major climax where the protagonist observes a video of the suspect torturing the murdered victim.
Editing: This trailer of the horsemen consists of various editing techniques used to add tension, establish genre and follow the typical conventions of a trailer. the editing elements also work together with the use of camera shots and sound to have a much more effective and efficient establishment. for example there are various shots in the first scene of the trailer that are mixed between, long shots, wide shots, close ups and extreme close ups to allow audience to view the character from different angles and places. The tension of the scene is increased with the increasing heart beat and the pace of the scene is increased with the editing that blacks out and jump cuts in between shots, establishing the genre of the trailer as well as making the audience feel like the scene is some form of flashback. The pace of the editing in this trailer is also used to cut the dialogue short and to create plot to the film, the camera will cut from an antagonist giving a clue to a murder, for example the woman who claimed that she was sorry, to the moment where the main protagonist finds that she is the actual suspect, which creates progression to the trailer. This may also have been established because the directors wish to keep important information of the film restricted to the audience.













*This is the editing technique used for tension in this trailer, a shot is initiated and the screen blacks out before showing another shot, this routine continues until a certain point in the trailer where the plot progresses.
Mise-en-scene: The props that are used in the trailer of the horsemen will mostly tend to establish the genre of the film, however a lot of these props are used subliminally and will require the audience to think further as to what meaning the props are given when being introduced in the trailer. For example a lot of evidence which were found by the police in the trailer consists of rotting teeth which will establish the horrific genre of the trailer, however the audience will have to think further and discover that the rotting teeth are linked to one of the horsemen known as famine.





*This is the shot of the rotting teeth which establishes the genre of the film as well as the subliminal image contained behind it.
The costumes i.e the clothes that are worn by the characters will represent the class that this trailer is representing, and also the time in which this trailer is taking place, for example when the police and investigators arrive the scene of a crime they will be wearing heavy coats and winter foot wear due to strong wintery weather in the film trailer. However the main reason for costumes in this trailer is to separate and allow the audience to distinguish between the protagonist and antagonist, or enable the viewers to establish who the protagonist is, however keep the identity of the antagonist covered. The character that appears the most in the trailer is established to be the protagonist, this can be noticed due to the smart suit that he is wearing and the bullet proof vest that he wears in some scenes which has the word police written on the front.





*These are the two shots that show how the costumes represent characters as main protagonists.
The lighting of the trailer will represent the presence of subliminal messages and background information which is always hidden from the main protagonists of the film, throughout the trailer the lighting seems to be either normal, which could have been established so that clear dialogue can be viewed, or dark and difficult to see what is occurring in the scene, this could also represent the presence of evil spirits or antagonism.




At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
The title of the trailer is revealed at the audience at the end of the last scene where the climax is brought to an end, this is typical of a trailer because directors tend to leave that piece information until the final seconds of the trailer, again so that audiences will finish viewing the trailer with the title being the last element that they have seen, as well as the title adding more emotion or drama as the camera jump cuts into the title.





*This is the title that is introduced at the end of the film trailer, unlike some trailer which have the usage of text and text background, this one uses a shot from the actual film, where the image of hooks are shown, therefore subverting the codes and conventions of a film trailer.
Why are we told who is starring in the film?
in terms of advertising the audience are told who is starring in the film in order to gain more attraction and interest,  this is because when using film trailers to advertise film products it is important for advertisers to gain the attention of audiences as quickly as possible because the use of television advertising is not very effective due to the restricted  time in which producers have to advertise their product.














* The trailer tells the audience that the main protagonist in this film is an actor called Dennis Quaid, this information is given towards the final segments of the trailer, while names of producers and distributors are introduced towards the beginning of the trailer.
How is this information given to us? Why?
This information is embedded in between the texts that fade in during the trailer, for example while the trailer is progressing and texts such as “Humanity has been warned” fades in and out of the scene, the main star of the film is also faded in somewhere near the final stretch of the trailer just before the tension reached its highest levels, this has been established most likely because the directors did not want to compromise or disturb any of the dialogue through the use of a voice over and therefore embedded the information of the stars of the film through the use of text.
















*Here is an example of the texts and typical lower thirds that are used in this trailer, notice how they are animated, in this case some letters in the wordings are highlighted while others are darkened and more difficult to see, this effect was establish to synchronize the font with the theme of the trailer.
What type of action from the film do we see?
In this trailer of the horsemen a lot of action is shown which relates to supernatural beings as well as normal beings who are psychologically desynchronised, meaning that some of the characters lives are distorted up to the point where they have lost sanity and become antagonists to the film. The type of actions showed in this film include crime investigations, murder cases, interrogations and conflict between the antagonist and protagonist, although you the audience can only observed from the protagonists point of view. This trailer also consists of puzzles and mysteries that are to be solved, like the film “Da Vinci code” and contains religious themes that are stereotypically represented as corrupt and invalid.





* The screen shots above show the type of action that the audience view in this trailer, the close up of the bible for example will establish the theme of religion, and the “come and see” quote being highlighted by the main protagonists finger will make reference to the same quote which was written in blood on the trees near the beginning of the trailer, initialising an idea that religion is in some way corrupt



*These screen shots show examples of victims and main antagonists who appear in the trailer, the shot showing a female character whisper in the ear of one who is bleeding and in distress shows the way in which antagonists have lost sanity.
What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
The first evidence of non diegetic music that can be noticed in this trailer are the sounds of bells and drums, which are quickly paced and gives subliminal ideas that the trailer being advertised is based on conflict between peace and war. The non diegetic sounds could also tell the audience the type of genre that the trailer evolves around, the idea of drums which adds pace to the film trailer establishes some form of action, and the ringing of non diegetic bells subverts the typical conflict between human beings, possibly bringing some form of supernatural antagonist or protagonist.
Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used? 
Like the trailer for the film “one missed call” this trailer does not consist of any voice overs, however similarly to one missed call the information regarding the plot of the film is transmitted through the use of texts that fade in and fade out of scenes, examples being a text that fades in saying “famine, pestilence, death and war”.
Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have?
Again an assumption can be made that directors have chosen not to include any voiceovers in this trailer in order for the audience to have a personal experience with the video rather than compromising the realism of the trailer through the use of the voice over, further more the ill presence of the voice over will also mean that the audience will not be distracted from the actual dialogue that is present within the trailer.
How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this?
Juxtaposing this trailer to a video clip will result in finding that the trailer is much slower in pace, where as a lot of information is being passed through from director to audiences when using a video clip meaning that the speed of the video clip is much quicker than the trailer and the plot is progressed with great speed. Like the trailer for “one missed call” this trailer has fluctuating speeds which is typical of a trailer because trailers will tend to increase tension as the plot continues to progress, therefore the speed of the trailer is slow during the opening seconds, however the speed increases towards climax near halfway through the trailer.
What information are we given about the film?
The information given in this trailer is very restricted and this could have been established because the director did not wish to give away too much information to the audience in order to increase curiosity and avoid compromising any important scenes in the film that would give away the ending. information of the date is given in this film trailer through the
use of text, however the exact date is not given away, the only evidence that is given to the audience is that the film will be released in the summer, therefore keeping news and information of the film hidden.


*typically the trailer brings up a few shots which show information regarding the film.
At what point in the trailer is this information given?
This information is given to the audience near the climax of the trailer, during the moment where the plot is in suspense, and the text fades in saying “this summer” which is unusual of a trailer because normally the date would be revealed shortly after the title of the film was shown to the audience.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
From the characteristics of the trailer, the film is most probably aiming at an audience whom is enthusiastic about horror and thriller trailers, aged from eighteen to twenty four years of age. The blood, gore, and graphic scenes that are revealed in this trailer give the idea that this film is not for a younger audience or people who have very strong views towards religion.
*This shot shows the audience that this trailer tries to aim at.


Analysing The Theatrical Trailer For Pandorum


Camera shots: the trailer composes of various shots that highlights the characters in the film in order to interest the audience. For example the starting seconds of the trailer uses close ups and extreme close ups so that facial features can be recognized and assumptions on intentions of the characters can also be made. the shots are also used to highlight the genre of this trailer, typically, a lot of diverse shots are used to enable the audience to analyze scenes, locations and characters from different angles, and perspectives.For example a close up is used to establish what was being shown through an extreme close up in the beginning of the trailer, the way this shot is taken looks as if either the audience or the character is looking at them upside down, creating that diverse feel of what viewers are observing. Again this may have been done in order to follow the codes and conventions of a film trailer or attract the attention of targeted audiences.








*Here are a few screen shots to to show examples of various close ups and extreme close ups used to show characters emotion to the audience, as well as the relationship between characters






*This is an example of the way in which the camera shows the trailer from various distances and angles


Sound:  the diegetic and non diegetic sounds used in this trailer, like the camera shots are diverse compared to the sounds of a normal horrific trailer without any other genres that it is trying to establish, meaning that the camera shots used in this trailer, as well as the sounds graphix are different compared to a trailer that does not fit in the hybrid category. Normally, sounds will work together with camera shots and editing in order to develop a climax that will be compromised near the final seconds of the trailer, however this trailer does not follow these conventions. The non diegetic sound that can be recognized in the opening of this trailer is a single note being played on a piano, and this is being played while the audience are looking into a characters dreams, this sound effect would be considered symmetrical with what is being shown, however when the camera jumps to the character having a very eventful awakening, the sound of the piano continues to be played, which shows that the sound effects are not in time with what is being shown. Again this may have been established by the director so that the film is subverted from a typical thriller, due the the fact that it is a hybrid of an action, sci-fi and thriller genre.



*The piano melody was being played while this shot was rolling.















Editing:  The editing in this trailer creates plot and progresses the story of the trailer fairly quickly, and this may have been established in order not to give away any pivotal scenes in the film. For example the length of shots that are taken are quite short in the beginning of the trailer, and the transition methods used are fade in and fade out effects, mixed with blackouts and jump cuts, which creates some kind of suspense as well as enabling the audience to comprehend that they are looking into the flashback of a character. Furthermore the pace of the editing in this trailer is also very quick in speed and seems to maintain that pace throughout the sequence until the climax scene, and in some scenes such as the moment where the protagonist are trying to block the attack of the unknown antagonist, the camera uses this editing technique that causes a flicker effect where the shot does not remain constantly visible and continues to black out, this represents danger and the presence of antagonism.


































*This is an example of fading effects used to transition shots, the use of texts fading in and out can also be visible






Mise-en-scene: The props in the trailer for Pandorum will establish the science fiction genre of the film, For example the mask that the main protagonist was using to breathe in the opening seconds of the trailer will give the audience an idea that the character is not situated in a normal location where oxygen enables him to breathe, this shows the viewers that the area in which the film is taking place is abnormal or completely out of the planet, therefore establishing the science fiction genre of the film trailer.
the lighting of this trailer is very dark and will not allow the audience to clearly see what is happening in the scenes, this establishment works together with the props that characters are using in order to let the audience know or be aware of the presence of antagonism, or characters that work against the objective of the objective. For example a scene near the half way point of the trailer has very limited lighting, and the main source of light will originate from this torch that the main protagonist is using to navigate himself around this alien establishment, this emphasizes that the characters are situated in an unknown environment where it is difficult to defend oneself from danger.










*These screen shots show how lighting in this trailer is limited in particular scenes, for example the shot where the torch is the only source of light, will again establish the presence of antagonism.
The acting and facial expressions of characters in this trailer will also establish the thriller and horror genre of the film, audience will be able to note that some characters are petrified and worried of the unknown danger that is bestowed upon the ship that they find themselves in. Furthermore the trailer also seems to follow some of the unwritten conventions that are found in most horror trailers, I.E the establishment where there is an abnormal protagonist, and characters will consist of people with courage, some who will be afraid and have limited skills of survival, and characters who have a very radical view on the situation and make very strange decisions. Although this convention can be highlighted in this trailer, the allocation of these elements are subverted between characters, for example women whom are normally stereotyped to have fear and a lack of survival skills, are represented to be courageous and very powerful in this trailer.










*Notice how some of the characters in these screen shots have fear present while some do not show any emotional fear.
At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
The trailer follows typical conventions of a television advertised film, like the previously analyzed trailers this one will introduce the title of the film near the final moments of the trailer where the climax scene has occurred and the thrills that were being transmitted to the viewers are diluted as soon as the title of the film fades in. This may have been established by director and creators for many reasons, for example the title may have been placed at the end to place some form of speed bump or stop sign, to tell the audience that they will have to wait for the actual release date of the film in order to view further. Another example which was highlighted before could be that the directors wanted the title to be the last piece of information that the audience would see in order to make sure that the viewers will remember.
*This is the way in which the title is introduced to the audience, the shot is very brief and the shot is emphasized with a male voice that simply says the name of the title, various things have been done to make the title clear for example font and size.
Why are we told who is starring in the film?



*The screen shots above show an example of a jump cut, which is typical of a thriller/action type film.


The sequences and texts that are given in this trailer do not introduce any names of stars or main characters in the film, like the title of the film there are many reasons why this may have been established by the creators of the trailer. A first point would be that the trailer already introduced the names of the distributing companies and producers, along with examples of films that they have created in the past, which was established through the use of fading texts, for example during the trailer the following text will fade in “From the creators of Resident Evil”, showing the audience the successful films that appeared before this one. By doing this the directors and creators of the film may have found no need to introduce any stars or characters in the film due the already established “buzz” through the use of the blockbuster film Resident Evil, or the directors may have decided to do this because they did not wish to over expose information regarding the film.











*The names of producers and information about the film is present at some point in this trailer, some will appear at the beginning and some will be shown later on, no particular info regarding stars or blockbusters are shown at the beginning or end of the sequence.

How is this information given to us? Why?
Films that are advertised through the use of television trailers would normally transmit information through the use of text, which fades in and out of scenes and also pushes the plot of the film forward. This is how the information of pandorum is given to the audience, while the visual elements of the trailer are being shown, text which is normally imputed through the use of editing will appear in front of what is being shown, directors would try and make the text look as realistic and as symmetrical with the trailer being shown, almost as if the text is part of the actual scene so that realism can be established.



















*This shows how text fades over the shots that are shown in the sequence, this is how information is given to the audience, because by doing so there would be no need for voice overs, which means that the quiet and thrilling atmosphere can be kept in the scenes.
What type of action from the film do we see?

In this trailer a lot of abnormal action is shown to the audience. This type of action will establish the theme and genre of the film as well as subvert the situation or stereotypes that characters are placed in. The trailer shows scenes of violence, death, extremism and dementia, between characters whom are recognised by the audience to be human beings, and other characters that are not shown to the audience as much as the main protagonists, this will emphasise the existence of a different species from an other world or dimension. There is also a lot of blood and gore in this trailer which will attract the type of audience that are interested in films like this one.













*Shots show examples of the type of action the audience will view in the trailer
What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
The type of music used in this trailer, particularly the music during the scene where the position of the main protagonists is compromised, will give particular clues that emphasise that the the trailer is advertising an action/horror/thriller film. For example the sound which was used during that scene represented the situation of struggle where characters are desperate to survive, the sounds and instruments that can be recalled during that scene are drums and the diegetic sounds of the screaming aliens, which will give a clue as to what type of film this trailer is advertising.
Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used? 
The trailer does not have a voice over to transmit information to the audience, and like the trailers which were analysed before, the use of text can be argued to be a voice over, however the one liners that are used by the characters in the film trailer could also be argued to be a voice over for the film trailer, as the things in which they say could be considered to be something which would normally be said by voiceover. For example one of the radical thinking characters said “You will never make it” to one of the main protagonists, however the way in which this line was introduced seems to be directed more towards the audience rather than the character.
Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have?
The trailer did not include any voice overs for a number of reasons, mainly so that the audience is not  subtracted from the scenes and distracted by the voiceover, to establish realism and make the scene look as if it was taken place, and because using the diegetic voices of characters would establish a more efficient effect on the people viewing the trailer.
How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this?
The trailer for this film compared to  a short video clip is very symmetrical, however the level of information transmitted to the audience is larger than a teaser trailer, furthermore the speed of the trailer fluctuates more often than the typical teaser trailer.
What information are we given about the film?
The information being transmitted in the trailer will consist of background intel on the film that is being advertised, by the time the trailer will finish audience will know the title of the film, the time or season in which it will be released, examples of films that were made by the same producers in the past for example resident evil and finally the audience will have an overview of what the plot of the film is like and will be aware of the type of genre and age rating the film will have.
At what point in the trailer is this information given?
The information given in this trailer is introduced at various points of the trailer sequence. For example the title of the film is shown near the end of the trailer before a final scene is shown to the audience, the previously produced title fades in as a text during a scene where tension is rising and the season or time where the film is released is shown right at the end of the trailer.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
Various elements of this trailer show that the film is aimed at a younger audience, somewhere in between mid teens and early adult age, this is because the film shows a lot of mild violence which can not be shown to a younger audience, and because that specific group is assumed to look at the world and its media differently, in other words they would view things in a much more creative way rather than sticking to realism. The sci-fi genre of this trailer is what gives away that feature, the abnormal situations and environments, mainly the ship that is in space where characters find themselves in also gives away the element that this trailer is aimed at a younger audience.
*This shows the age and type of audience that viewed the film, as you can see the title was aiming at a younger audience aged between fifteen and twenty four years of age. The reason why the title did not reach further into a much younger audience may have been due to age restrictions and age ratings set by the BBFC.



Analysing The Theatrical Trailer For REC 2







Analysing Teaser Trailers

Saw 3D (Teaser)




Camera shots: This trailer consists of many shots that are used to view situations from various angles which is convention of a teaser trailer, the length of these shots are relatively small and they tend to last for at least two seconds. Furthermore the theme and genre of this film is established through the use of close ups and extreme close ups, with an additional usage of movement that consists of tilts, pans and dollies. For example during the trailer there is this close up of this character who has found himself in a position where deathly machinery is in motion and he can not escape. the camera will pan to the left as it tries to follow the pace of the spinning blade moving back and forth, this establishes the action and thriller genre of the film, as well as subliminally represents the presence of antagonism in the machinery.



























*This is the example shot which shows a character trying to gain control of the run away machinery, notice how the camera is blurred in this shot because it is trying to pan at the same pace of the spinning blade, 

Sound: the trailer does not introduce a soundtrack  until the half way point of the advertisement where  the pacing is subverted, however before that occurs there is a lot of mysterious and very frightful non diegetic sound effects that will establish the genre of the film, an example of this would be the low base that fades in during a scene. 
Editing: the pace of scene transition in this trailer is very fast and quick, again this will be due to the length of the film footage being shown, the main editing technique that is used to change scenes is a jump cut which is effective for initializing a thrilling genre, as well as speeding the plot of the film and driving the trailer towards the end quickly so that not a lot of information is compromised to the audience. 





*Editing pace in this trailer may have been used to make particular shots very difficult to capture, these subliminal shots would have to be paused manually by the audience in order to clarify.
Mise en scene: the lighting of this trailer is dark during the first segments, and the audience will find it challenging to recognize what is being shown, this will increase curiosity and will make the audience wish to find out more about the trailer by watching the actual film. Furthermore the subliminal theme of the trailer being shown will also define the plot of the film, the darkness established will tell the viewers that dark deeds and antagonists are present and that a lot of violence will also be involved.







*Example screen shots of scenes where lighting is very limited and characters are can not be recognized or established
Facial expressions are used to establish realism and add tension to the trailer. Characters will show a lot of fear, and the audience will be able to recognize this when the camera closes up on their face. The props that are used, particularly the machines that draw near to the victims before their death will also add to the subliminal presence of an antagonist.





At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
Like theatrical trailers the title of this film is introduced at the end of the sequences that were being shown to the viewers, again this may have been established because advertisers wish that the title would be the final element being shown in the teaser.









*One element that is different about this trailer is that the name of the film appears twice, however the name appears at the end of the trailer to establish that the film is part of the saw series, followed by the name of the film.


Why are we told who is starring in the film?
This trailer does not give any information as to whom is starring in the film, however advertisers will tend to compromise the names of actors so that viewers are aware of any other films that the current actors may have been in, therefore making the audience wish to view this new release.
What type of action from the film do we see?
This teaser consists of very torturous actions, where characters are shown being put into very extreme stalemates, and evidence of radical antagonism is present, this is made clear through the use of a voice over which sounds very dark and daunting to its targeted audience.




What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
The non diegetic soundtrack is not introduced until characters are shown being seconds away from death, which is near the half way point of the trailer. The soundtrack contains a drum beat and a set of strings being played throughout, this establishes many themes, mainly the struggle of life and death in terms of the characters trying to complete puzzles and the way in which the antagonist of the film believes that he is completing his work for a majestic purpose, furthermore the music will give an evident clue that this is an action\horror type of film.
Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used? 
Various points can be made regarding the type of voice over used in this trailer. Firstly it gives a lot of messages that emphasise that there were various prequels to the trailer being shown, the male and dark voice used give the impression that the person whom is speaking is insane or has a radical view point towards life and sees everything differently compared to the normal society in which people live in.
Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have?
This voice over may have been chosen due to the theme and genre that the creators are trying to establish. In terms of effects that are imprinted upon the audience, the voice over would create some kind of fear on the audience due to the scary, dark and male voice that is used.
What information are we given about the film?
The trailer follows the codes and conventions of a teaser, therefore the information that is being transmitted is very limited and it will be difficult for the audience to know any background details such as producers and release dates, the only piece of information that is shown in this trailer is that the film will be released in october time.






















At what point in the trailer is this information given?
The information is given at the end of the trailer just after the title of the film was shown to the audience.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
The trailer seems to aim at a young teenage to young adult audience, this is because of the type of action which is present within the trailer, apart from that, information gathered from previous saw releases shows that the film grasped the attention of this particular audience, this is how you can tell what audience the film is aiming at.





Pandorum (Teaser)




Camera shots: comparing the use of camera shots to the theatrical trailer, pandorum’s teaser trailer contains a lower number of camera shots that are used to advertise the films, therefore when shots or scenes are being shown, the average length of the camera shots are slightly longer, for example the opening shots of the teaser trailer are on average three to four seconds long, compared to the theatrical trailer which contains shots that are on average two to three seconds long. This may have been established in order to follow the codes and conventions of a teaser trailer, where the number of camera shots or film footage is kept to a minimum in order to increase curiosity at the end of the teaser trailer.

























*Initially the teaser begins in the same way as the theatrical trailer, however the scene is looked at in more depth, meaning that the audience will have a deeper comprehension of the scene, rather than moving on to the next scene.
Sound: Again when comparing the two types of trailer together, the teaser trailer contains more non diegetic sounds, diegetic sounds, and the dialogue is also diminished.  The theatrical trailer which contained conversations that could easily be understood by audience and viewers will have a heavier set of dialogue compared to the teaser trailer which tends to rely more “one liners” or “punch lines”, this means that the teaser trailer will not be focused on establishing the plot of the film, rather show exciting film footage and leave viewers with more questions to ask.
Editing: pace is established through the use of editing in this teaser trailer, usually the pacing will be set at one level which is normally quick and difficult to follow, or the pace will begin slowly and then pick up to a very quick speed. In this trailer the pace seems to have a rolling start, the pace is relatively quick although the timing of camera shots are lengthy compared to a theatrical trailer, unlike the actual trailer of this film, this one uses a wider variety of transition movements, before speeding up and relying solely on jump cuts and straight cuts. This may have been done for multiple reasons, mainly because directors wish to use a unique method for transition in between scenes in order to give audiences something new to look at as well as subverting the genre of the trailer.













*the transition techniques between these three shots are quick jump cuts compared to the theatrical trailer which uses fades, this may have been done to speed tup the pace of the trailer in order to keep the trailer short.
Mise-en-scene: The props in the two trailers are fairly symmetrical, the audience are still viewing the same character holding the flash light which represents dependency on technology in order to survive in the abnormal establishment that protagonists find themselves in, furthermore representing the one sided ratio of darkness against light, meaning that protagonists are at an advantage against the antagonists.









*These are shots that close up on the props that are used by antagonist in the trailer, both shots that are shown will be found in both the teaser trailer as well as the theatrical trailer, which means that they both establish the same plot and theme of antagonism.
In terms of locations however, the teaser trailer ignores or undermines the scene that the theatrical trailer was showing , where equilibrium was present and the main protagonist seemed happy, this is a difference that is highlighted when comparing the two trailers together, the teaser may have established this in order to diminish the length of what was being shown to follow the codes and conventions of a teaser trailer, where timing is between thirty to sixty seconds long.






*Notice that these were shots that were used in the theatrical trailer which are not present in the teaser, this means that audiences will either find it more difficult to comprehend the.




In terms of acting and facial expressions, the two trailer keep everything almost similar, however the theatrical trailer would enable the audience to recognize more side characters in the film through the use of shots, compared to the teaser trailer who keeps  camera footage to a minimum.

*This character was present in the theatrical trailer however the teaser trailer did not include him, which shows how the longer trailer goes into deeper depth in terms of characters, while the shorter trailer tends to undermine these side characters.


At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?
Similarly to the theatrical trailer the name of the film is introduced near the end of the film footage, however the teaser trailer has the title of the film located closer towards the end of the film footage, just prior to the final cut established by the directors which is following  a text saying “coming soon”


Why are we told who is starring in the film?

The teaser trailer does not give any information as to who is starring in the film, however, like the theatrical trailer, further background information is shown below the text that says “coming soon” which is shown right at the end of the film footage.


How is this information given to us? Why?

In terms of transmitting information to the audience, this trailer follows the conventions of the theatrical trailer and uses text in order to give viewers information to the plot and previous films that were made by the producers, however one difference can be outlined, comparing the name of the title given in the theatrical trailer, sound meaning a non diegetic voice over is used near the end of the teaser trailer which reads the title “Pandorum” this may have been done to increase excitement, tension and ‘buzz” levels.


What type of action from the film do we see?

This teaser trailer contains similar action footage that will establish the genre or theme of the film, juxtaposing this with the theatrical trailer, shots of the environment are shown more often, meaning that the location of where the film is taken place is viewed moreover the characters, furthermore there is more onscreen action, for example the teaser trailer will consist of more in depth conflict between the protagonists and antagonists towards the ending of the trailer.

What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
In terms of music and non diegetic soundtrack, the sounds give the audience clues that the trailer is advertising a science fiction film, this can be recognized because of the robotic and abnormal sounds that are heard during the first few seconds of the trailer where tension and suspense levels are low. Furthermore the very highly paced drumming at the final sequence of the trailer establish the other genre embedded within this film which is in this case action.
Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used? 
The trailer contains a voice over which is used to read the title at the end of the sequence, the voice is very deep in tone and is also sounds very daunting to its viewers, this establishes the thrilling genre of the film. However when comparing the two trailers together, there is more voice overs and more text being emphasized, again the same voice is being used throughout the whole sequence, and while the theatrical trailer tries to establish realism by keeping voice overs to the minimum the teaser trailer does the exact opposite where a lot of one liners are enhanced through the use of non diegetic voice overs and diegetic dialogue is minimized.


















*These are example of shots which are emphasized through the use of voice overs when the non diegetic voice reads out the text that is being shown on the screen.
Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have?
There are a few reasons why this teaser trailer would have included voice overs unlike the theatrical trailer. Firstly it may have been because the directors may have wanted to add some diversity to the two trailers being shown mainly because they have many camera elements in common, these including shots, quotes, characters etc. Another reason may have been because the two different types of trailers may be similar, however have different objectives, for example while the longer trailer may be there to give audience an insight as to what the film will consist of, the shorter trailer will try to do the opposite and deprive audiences of pivotal scenes. Putting this into the context of audiences, the director of the teaser trailer may have found that using voice overs would  take minimal focus away from what is being shown, as well as making it easier and faster to drive the plot of the trailer, therefore shortening the length of the sequence.
How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a trailer from a film? Why is this?
typically the speed of the teaser trailer is much quicker than the theatrical trailer. Again this can be noticed through editing, while the longer trailer uses fades and more lengthy transition techniques, the teaser trailer will tend to use jump cuts more often 
What information are we given about the film?
Information about this film is quite limited when comparing the trailer to the theatrical version which is also considered to have limited information being given to the audience. This short trailer focuses more on the plot of the film again through the use of text and voice overs, for example some of the effective one liners such as “What if you discovered...” which may have been established in order to create plot through text rather than using actual shots. Notice how this shorter trailer uses blank shots while the text is being shown, rather than fading the text in over the actual film footage, by doing this less scenes are being compromised to the audience however information and plot is still being created.





*This is a further example of text which is used to drive the plot of the film forward without exposing any film footage.
At what point in the trailer is this information given?
Like the theatrical trailer the time period in which this information is being given is quite similar, apart from the names of the producers and distributors who are shown somewhere near the beginning of the sequence rather than showing them before the sequence actually begins.






*These are the producers and creators of the film which are introduced at later time in the trailer rather than at the beginning.


Freddie vs Jason (Teaser)



At what point in the trailer are we told the name of the film? Why is this?

Around the final sequences of the teaser trailer, prior to the final cut which is introduced to the audience, the name or title of the film is introduced in a text format, where the animation makes the text look quick and flashy, furthermore the text will take approximately three seconds to appear and disappear from the screen, and the font that is used for the “Jason” character is also altered, meaning different from the “freddie” and the “vs”. Introducing the title at the end of the film sequence is stereotypical of a teaser trailer however this may have been established in order to make the title more effective or attractive to its viewers, by placing the title at the end of the video sequence this will allow the audience to view what the trailer contains in terms of plot, and enable the trailer to develop tension, followed by adrenaline, finally the climax which is quickly cut off by the title, therefore establishing effectiveness. The title may have been designated to last three seconds so that suspense is not created, that audiences do not gain too much satisfaction from viewing the trailer and so that the trailer can fit into the thirty to sixty second section where it can be considered a teaser trailer.

*This is the title which appears near the end of the trailer sequence, in the background, the iconic elements of the two antagonists can be distinguished, on the right there is the sharp metal claw of the antagonist known as Freddy Cougar, while on the left is the full face mask of the antagonist known as Jason.



Why are we told who is starring in the film?


Neither stars nor additional actors are compromised in this trailer, meaning that viewers are not told whom is actually playing the role of any characters in this film. However the names of the distributor New Line Cinema is given right at the beginning of the sequence, and this is established through the use of animated text, like the position of the title in this trailer, there are a few reasons why this may have been established by the directors, mainly because they may have wanted the audience to have an idea of background information regarding the film before viewing the sequence, however this may not have been a main objective which would explain why the title of New Line Cinema does not get a large level of on screen time. Furthermore there are also reasons why the names of actors were not compromised in this trailer, one reason may be because it is a teaser, and when directors establish a teaser trailer they do not wish to expose any names of actors or stars in order to maintain the information about the film as limited and compressed as possible.





*The title of the film producers is the first element shown in the sequence, however appears and disappears from the screen in under one second
















How is this information given to us? Why?



Although this information is not directly given to the viewers, there may have been some form of subliminal methods in which the directors attempted to feed this information to the audience without compromising too much about the the actual film or its background. Again throughout the trailer there is zero percent of information given in terms of production, excluding the title of the producer in the beginning, however at the far most end of the trailer the name of the website is introduced which is given to the viewers through the use of text, this website contains a fair amount of background information regarding the film, its actors  etc. and people who visit this website will find it easily accessible meaning that there is no kind of covert puzzle that they must complete in order to gain this information. The final slide of the trailer also gives some small details as to technologies used and any other companies , directors may have established this because they believed that this information was not relatively important.








What type of action from the film do we see?







A wide variety of action can be seen in this clip of combined sequences from the film “Freddie vs Jason” where the genre is established, attraction is gained by the audience and plot is decreased or not generated so that the audience remain in mystery and will continue to ask questions until they view the actual film. this trailer can be divided into two halves, the first half is used to generate tension, and this is where the pacing of the trailer is generally slow, the camera shots are large in length, shots such as extreme close ups, close ups and shots at high or low angle are used to establish the two main characters in the film and to enable the audience to comprehend their position in this film. The second half is used to generate adrenaline before the trailer is cut short, this is where editing pace has been quickened and shots are much shorter in length, here a lot more shots are used and these shots consist of extreme and radical violence, some forms of abnormal and supernatural behavior, as well as the theme of unethical human hunting.





















*The screen shots above show the first half of the trailer which generally consists of text rather than actual film footage, again these shots are more lengthy than the second half of the sequence, and the close ups used establish the two antagonists 






















*These are screen shots taken from the second half of the trailer, these shots are more action based and are shorter in length as well as consist of more camera movement.
What clues does the music give us as to what type of film the trailer is advertising?
In terms of non diegetic soundtrack, the trailer begins with a dark but very simplistic piano tune, where one note can be recalled being noted three times with the same intervals each time its played, in the background of this piano tune there is some subversive sounds that can not be recognized as an instrument and this will generate tension as well as fear, therefore giving a clue that the trailer is advertising a fearful horror film. around the half way point of the sequence the music is subverted and this is done with a bridge that connects the two different paces without jumping straight into the faster tempo. This bridge is the low angle shot which is looking up at the two main characters surrounded by flames and during this shot there is this sinking sound that marks the beginning of the action sequence, and this action sequence is reinforced with a voice over that says “welcome to my nightmare” which would suggest that the violence and killing has begun. Immediately after this bridge the pacing of the music is quickened, the piano is no longer present in this heavy bass drum can be heard being played ferociously in the background, and this bass almost represents a heart beat, which will give an obvious clue that the trailer is advertising a thriller/action type film.


*This shot is the bridge that connects the two halves of the trailer together, this is where the voice over “Welcome to my nightmare” is heard


Does the trailer come with a voice over and if so, what can you tell about the voice being used?



The trailer consists of three voice over which consist of the following descriptions. The first one is film related meaning that the voice over is part of the actual sequence being shown, it is non diegetic and the viewers will assume that it is the voice of a little girl, it is really difficult to recognize precisely what she is saying, however this is what seems to be what she said “warn your friends, warn everyone” and she says this in a very smooth and dark  way in which will subvert the stereotype of a child where there innocence is pure. The second voice over is also film related however this voice represents the main antagonist of the film and it is also used as a one liner, meaning it is a quote from the film. This voice is played during the bridge between the two halves of the trailer and the audience will recall him saying “Welcome to my nightmare” and he says this in a dark manner as well as the little girl, furthermore his voice sounds like he has been injured or as if he has been dying of old age. The final voice over is not related to the film meaning that it is not part of the actual sequence, this is the male voice over that reads the title of the film whilst its being shown, the voice over says this title in a very dramatic and epic way.




Why do you think this voice was chosen? What effect does it have?


Like the various non diegetic sound effects, there are a few reasons why these voice overs may have been chosen for this particular teaser trailer, one could be so that the directors make the audience raise questions as to what this film is trying to represent, meaning that audience will wish to find out more information about the plot or background in order to find answers to their questions. Secondly the voice over that emphasizes the title of the film may have been established to enhance the epical ending of the climax scene as well as making the transmission of the title information more efficient. Furthermore the voice over of the main antagonist who suggests the beginning of his ”nightmare” would have been used as a one liner to give the viewers a sample of the dialogue that this film consists of, which follows the codes and conventions of a normal theatrical trailer.














How does the speed of what we see compare to watching a clip from a film? Why is this?

In terms of plot transmission to the audience and pacing this trailer subverts the codes and conventions of what people would recognize as a teaser. Like a typical teaser this sequence is about thirty to sixty seconds long, contains multiple shots where audiences view moments from different angles and has camera shots with a fairly small number of seconds in terms of length. However unlike a typical teaser trailer that would in most occasions stick to a designated pace which would be quick and difficult for the audience to gain much in terms of plot and theme, this trailer begins with a slow pace and ends in a very quick pace, again going back to the two halves of the teaser trailer, the first half contains a small number of shots with some length while the second half contains a variety of shots with limited length.


What information are we given about the film?


Going back to the subliminal techniques used by the directors, information regarding the making of the film such as its distributor and the company that directed all of the sound effects are given normally through the use of text which fades in an out at some point when the sequence is shown, and information regarding the film itself such as characters, actors locations and plot is given subliminally through the use of the internet, and this was established by inserting a link to a website that audiences will have to go to in order to gain this information.





*This is an example of the text used to give information to the audience, like the typical conventions of a trailer, this teaser does not give a definite release date



At what point in the trailer is this information given?
The names of distributors and sound graphics as well as the link to the website that contains additional information is located at the end of the trailer, just after the final cut of the main antagonists face appearing in front of a character.
What type of audience is the trailer aimed at? How can you tell?
judging by the level of action that is found in the second half of this trailer, and considering the type of fictional scenes that are established, the trailer seems to aim at an intermediately young audience, meaning that it is aimed at intermediate teenagers from the age of fifteen onwards, the film could also be considered to aim at young adults, particularly because the plot originates from a series of films which were made during the nineteenth century.



Analysing film poster (Pandorum)








Analysing film poster (Buried)




Analyzing film magazine (Empire)






Analyzing Film magazine (Total Film vs Empire Magazine)








Teaser And Theatrical Trailer Comparison





























Objectives:

both types of trailers would try to transmit information regarding the film being advertised to a specific audience, however a theatrical trailer would go into depth and establish plot, characters, location and other important segments of the film, a lot of pivotal scenes would also be shown in order to attract the audience into viewing the film when it is released in the cinemas, this is why in most occasions a theatrical trailer would be longer in length when compared to a teaser trailer. Although both types of trailers confound upon the same objectives, teaser trailers constrain the amount of footage being shown to the audience, this is mainly because they try to create some kind of vibe or viral marketing in order to enhance the number of people who will view the film upon its release, this will be the reason why teaser trailers are released a fair number of months before the actual release date, in order to create enough time for viral marketing to take place. Plot is also difficult to establish when viewing teaser trailers again because of length, but also because not a lot of characters are shown, and location is difficult to recognise.



Camera shots:

Teaser trailer:  The number of shots that are used are very limited, the sequence consists of close ups and extreme close ups, only one character can be established and that the area that this scene is situated in can not be recognized, this may have been done to follow the codes and conventions and leave the audience with questions as to what the scene is about, furthermore due to the number of shots in the trailer being relatively small, the length of each shot is stretched and takes longer to cut out, creating some kind of suspense, and slowing the plot of the film down.






































Theatrical trailer:   This trailer consists of various different shots where scenes are looked at from different angles and positions, comparing this with the teaser trailer, this sequence contains more scenes, more characters, shorter shot lengths, more locations and time periods and pivotal action scenes are established, in other words while the teaser trailer tries to keep the plot of the film hidden, the theatrical trailer does the opposite and drives the plot forward using various camera shots, allowing the audience to understand what the film is about, rather than leaving them uninformed. This type of trailer would have been released around a few weeks before the actual release when the audience would have been aware of the films upcoming screening, being the reason why the trailer goes into deeper depth as to what the film is about, just to answer any outstanding questions that people may have had.






































Editing:

Teaser trailer:     Pacing of editing cuts are steady and slow in the first few shots of the trailer before the speed increases slightly, camera continues to cut to different angles in the same location and same establishment, some of the shots are used twice and the editing technique relies solely on straight cuts. However the beginning of the trailer does not consist of actual footage, in fact the use of fading text is present in order to establish the director of the film Steven Spielberg, which is a method of creating a vibe for the film to be virally marketed.























Theatrical trailer:   Due to the length of each camera shot the editing pace of the trailer is fairly quick, the objective and the scene establishments also quicken the pace of the editing because the camera needs to cut in between different scenes quickly in order to give the audience a full overview of the film in the space of two to three minutes, that being the typical length of a theatrical trailer. However the pacing does not remain constant throughout the whole trailer, it begins steadily before progressing to a more intermediate speed where shots last around one to two seconds ,editing techniques used are very basic, the standard jump cuts and straight cuts are used in order to progress the trailer onwards.






















Sounds:   
Teaser trailer:   The sequence begins with non diegetic sound effects of futuristic and science fiction tones which are bent in order to get the sense of abnormality, which establishes the plot of the film subliminally, when the scene of the main character begins to show, the sounds of him walking and hitting the vehicle can be heard as well as the non diegetic sound tones which have become louder and more frequent at this stage, no dialogue is present until the final segments where a non diegetic voice asks the main character “how far are you going” which he replies with “about thirty years” before the sounds of the non diegetic soundtracks jump in.






Theatrical trailer:   While the teaser tries to keep the information in a covert format through the use of mysterious non diegetic soundtrack, the theatrical trailer rather does the opposite and literally explains the plot of the film to the audience through a non diegetic voice over which gives an overall view of the film where characters and situations are established. Furthermore the trailer also consist of rich dialogue taken from the film, conversations and one liners are used to gain attraction of the films targeted audience.




Trailer presentation




In order to complete our media main task we first need to show understanding of the codes and conventions of a trailer and conventions of specific trailer genres, we have made our presentation plan and split the presentation in the following manor: 





Presentation


Introduction, trailer identification and main discussion (start, genre, graphics and typography)








Main discussion (editing, camera shots and sound)






Main discussion (narrative characters, enigmas, accolades and reviews)




Research into audiences must be completed in order to have an idea as to who we should aim our trailer at, the following questionnaire was used to gain information as to what our trailer should consist of. We handed the questionnaire out to ten people, nine males and one female on the basis of opportunity sampling.







Questionnaire Results:


                                                            1. What is your gender?

2. Which age group do you belong to?

3. How often do you watch horror movies in a time period of a month?

4. Which genre of horror films do you feel have the biggest scar factor?

5. How much of the general plot should be revealed in a theatrical trailer for a horror? 

6. How long should a theatrical trailer be for a horror film?

7. Should the trailer be fast paced throughout, or should there be build up of tension from beginning to end?

8. Is music an essential part of a horror trailer, or would a use of voice overs be more effective?

9. What type of locations should be used?

10. What do you consider to be the most important factor in what makes a horror movie scary?

We also ask one of the participants who filled out the questionnaire to share his thoughts on what he wants to see from our trailer, this was done so that can ask open question as well as closed so that we can collect more elaborative answers. *Our participant was camera shy, so some answers given are difficult to hear, so subtitles are  given.



Planning:


Now that we have completed our research and have broken down our target audience to a specific trailer genre, we can begin to plan the elements of our film trailer. We have decided to create both a theatrical and teaser trailer to show a wider level of comprehension and understanding. We first began with establishing what our trailer was going to be about.




The film Blist is a story our group came up with that incorporates story elements taken from our AS coursework trailers, however this is not a sequel to our AS work. The story involves a man named Zander who has been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He was a witness to his childhood friend’s death, who was brutally murdered and the killer left unknown. From then on he has been experiencing complications with his day to day life. There have been problems such as hearing voices and seeing things. However the target audience would soon realise as would Zander that everything he has been experiencing has been real and that his past is catching up with him. His friend is back, but he brought something back with him, and will only be satisfied with vengeance.



Along with taking story elements from our AS and improving upon them, we will also be taking events from those trailers and converging them in our new trailer. An example would be a character dying in the ally way from the trailer "The Last Word", we will take an event like that and find a way to construct it better in our A2 film trailer.

For our main task we wanted an antagonist who could pull off being the face of our trailer, the main source of what appeals to our target audiences. The antagonist would have to set the tone for this trailer and work well with the given plot.
Since our trailer involves the super natural we have decided that our character needs depth and personality, as opposed to a antagonist with no or little emotion which most horror films try to create.  There were several examples we could have chosen but we decided to go with the antagonist in the two videos below. Although this is a series and not a film, there are multiple elements within this video which we will be constructing our ideas off of that can fit comfortably in a horror/thriller trailer. Ignore the music, we could not find any YouTube videos that did not include any.







Research Into Film Ratings (Plan)




Looking At Codes And Conventions

Whilst researching trailers and audiences we also took time to research into codes and conventions of promotional film material, we found this powerpoint on the net and decided to place it on our site so that we can have an idea of what rules our media products should be following .





Characters/Actors, Costumes, Props, Locations 

Chris Eze Stars As Blist
Aaron Onojaife Stars As Zander
Ken Eze Stars As X "Unknown, Yet to be revealed" 


These are the clothes that are going to make up the costume for Blist (after being possessed), we chose black to represent evil, and how the demon inside him is corrupting his body and soul.  




These are the clothes that are going to make up the costumes for Blist (before he became possessed), we chose all white to symbolise good within the trailer. Also used to show how Blist was innocent and harmless before the events of the trailer.



We used fake blood for the picture up above of the white shirt with blood on it. This was done so that we could make our trailer more believable and show that at some point in our trailer that they will be in some kind of harm. 


These are different locations that will appear in our theatrical trailer. 



Teaser Trailer Screenplay (original)







Teaser Trailer Screenplay (edited)












Final Storyboard Teaser Trailer (before recording)










Storyboard (after recording)









Final Screenplay (theatrical trailer)














Final Storyboard (theatrical trailer)












Final Poster Plan


Final Magazine Plan




Feedback and editing regarding the final plan:

*After making our drafting our magazine front cover for the second time we were given professional feedback and we were told that the front cover does not look like the cover of an existing "Empire" magazine. Therefore we decided to pick an example of an existing magazine and followed the text and placement accordingly.



Pictures Of Us Planning









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