FILM TRAILER INITIAL IDEAS

ALICE SOPHIE TURRELL

GENRE IDEASThere are three main film genres I would like to use, these are;

• Horror

• Thriller

• Action

For all of these possible genres I would most likely create a teaser trailer instead of theatrical trailer as it is more crucial and important to the promotion of the film. This is because it gets seen more widely, on television, the internet and in some cases awards shows and talk shows where the actor or director is promoting the movie. Whereas a theatrical trailer would only be seen by those watching a similar genre film in the cinema or DVD.

HORRORAudience;

The audience would be at least 15 for a horror trailer. This is due to the content show gore, and strong horror themes. The type of audience depends on the type of film. A very gory torture film would attract fans of the Saw series, but more of a haunted house/true events inspired film would attract fans of films such as The Amityville Horror.

Editing Conventions

From the trailers I have been looking at, there are clear conventions used. For example, fast cuts to include more action and show suspense. Another convention is how the cuts fade in and out of each other to join them together more smoothly. Generally, horror films have quite dark lighting, for example the story is set at night, or in a house with no electricity and candles. To add to the suspense, flashes of light are sometimes added to show something getting closer to the camera in stages.

Mise en Scène

Typically, horror films are shot in desolate locations in old, or abandoned buildings such as a warehouse or big haunted house, such as The Conjuring. There is also a forest as well, especially when the film is sent outside such as Friday the 13th as it means there is lots of places for the victims to run and get caught.

THRILLERAudience

For a thriller movie, the age could differ a bit depending on the content, so if there was a lot of adult themes, it could be an 18, however if there is very little violence, blood etc. then the rating could be a 12A. As the genre of thriller covers a broad list of movie styles, for example some lean towards the horror ideas such as House At The End of the Street. Some lean towards more psychological and dramatic ideas such as Taken.

Editing Conventions

After looking at a variety of thriller trailers, there are convention that they all follow, no matter the sub genre. A very obvious one is the pace. They are either very fast paced through the trailer, particularly a teaser trailer as they want to include as much action and create as much suspense as possible to get the viewers hooked. With theatrical trailers the pace often picks up throughout the film increasing rapidly. Another convention is how they are quite dark. This is evident in the Gone trailer, which looks very bleak and grey. The music played is also crucial as it adds to the pace and can make the audience feel uneasy. The music is often fast paced, but can also be quite slow to add more drama and suspense.

Mise en Scène

Thrillers usually involve someone being stalked, or chased. This tends to happen or end up in a house as it shows the criminal for example invading the victims personal space. Due to thriller often having sub genres, the mise en scene often relies on the type of film. For a psychological thriller it could be held in a mental asylum or even a typical suburban street to give it a realistic sense of verisimilitude.

DRAMAAudience

With the drama genre, it is hard to give a specific audience type and age as there is so many sub genres that appeal to different people and can be watched by varying age groups. So, instead I will pick two examples to work with; Pulp Fiction and The Lovely Bones. These are both very different movies but both are under the Drama genre.

For Pulp Fiction, the audience would be 18 years old due to the explicit use of drugs, violence and language throughout due to its themes. The audience would be fans of Quentin Tarantino films – auteur criticism – and bloody, crime involving movies.

With The Lovely Bones, it would be aimed at people aged 15 and up, because although there is adult themes that in some parts are quite strong, it can be targeted at a slightly younger audience than Pulp Fiction. The target audience of this would be mostly female and interested in quite sad, emotional dramas and fans of true life dramas.

DRAMA CONTINUEDEditing Conventions

With dramas, their aim is to appear realistic yet be dramatic, emphasizing certain actions and scenes. From the trailers I have been looking at, the cuts are fast to include enough of the story line to grab attention, but not to make it seem scary or anything else similar. The shot types are often close ups, mid close ups and establishing shots to set the scene and show the characters emotion which is key in dramas. Close ups are also used a lot in teaser trailers to introduce the characters. In terms of colour and lighting, they are often quite neutral to create a believable verisimilitude, however in The Lovely Bones, some is set in the main characters – Salmon – idea of Heaven. In these scenes, colours are lighter, brighter and softer. In terms of backing music, the music matched the pace of the music, for example Pulp Fiction has very fast paced music, whereas The Lovely Bones is a lot softer and sounds quite light to match the theme.

Mise en Scène

Generally, due to the realistic nature and intentions of dramas, they are often set in every day locations such as suburban streets, homes, schools and hospitals. Settings also can be based on real places, an example is The Impossible which is a realistic recreation of the tsunami in Thailand.

WHAT I WOULD CHOOSEAlthough I need to get peer feedback to find out others opinions, if it was up to me, I would do a horror film trailer. This is because I personally prefer horror movies, and therefore feel I would enjoy making it more than any other trailer, which would give me a better overall result. I also have more ideas and concepts for horror and feel I could create a deeper storyline and shoot, edit and present it as a finished product better than any other genre.

I would also chose to make a teaser trailer rather than a theatrical trailer. This is because I think they are more crucial to the films promotion, as they reach a wider audience and tend to be more gripping and make people want to find out more, i.e. find the theatrical trailer on YouTube. I also think that teaser would work best with the horror genre, as you can make the cuts fast, jumpy and create even more suspense and scare the audience more, making a trailer that sticks in their head.

AUXILIARY TASKSThe choices of options to go along with the trailer are;

• Website homepage

• Magazine cover promoting the movie

• Promotional poster for the movie

Out of the three I would choose the magazine cover and the poster. This is because I feel with my interest of photography and horror photography, I could plan, shoot and edit images the represent the movie well and would actively promote it. I also feel these ideas are more creative and link more closely to the trailer due to lighting, location, use of models/actors and colours whereas the website does not necessarily focus on these more creative, visual aspects.