Analysis Of Trailers

ByStefan Eric

Paranormal Activity Scream

• MPAA’s rating card• Quotes in trailer claim film as being

‘Scary’ , ‘Freaky’ and ‘Terrifying’• Title of the movie• Shows when movie is set to release• Only shows two characters• Plot summary• Cast, credits and the studio

information• Music and voiceovers• Credits• Release date

• MPAA ‘s rating card • Name of director• 6 actors/actresses (cast)• 1 masked character• Institutions• Voiceover• Plot summary• Title of the movie• Credits• Release date

Conventions Used

Camera WorkParanormal Activity Scream

This whole movie is filmed with a camera being held by a person, this is usually called shaky camera or hand-held camera. I believe the reason for this is to make the scenes seem more realistic for the viewers and that they feel as if they’re part of the action, and without doubt this type of shot is best suited for horror movies as it will offer that extra scare for the audience. The technique of the hand-held camera is used to make the film more intense. The movement of the camera is often quite slow until something is about to happen, the amount of cut scenes increase; signifying that there is a build up.

Close up on a phone because the entire film revolves around not picking up the phone. Establishing shot which shows the setting of the film. Close up on the scream of the character which shows the emotion. Track of the female character running away from something, also shows close ups of main characters to show the fear in their eyes. Medium close up of the house demonstrates how big the house is, also it gives the audience an idea of the space there is in the house and this is a key skill as it’ll also give the audience the indication that there’ll be a lot of chase scenes throughout. Right at the end there's a tilt shot of one of the characters falling down hinting that the characters are in some sort of danger.

EditingParanormal Activity Scream

The pace of the paranormal activity trailer starts off slow but gets very fast due to it being a horror movie (so there is a build up), so its supposed to make the viewers jump at the unexpected scenes when they're not anticipating anything to happen. There is not much cross cutting in the scenes as the setting is in the house and the camera just follows the characters around wherever they go.

The pace of the trailer is incredibly fast paced and the scenes are constantly changing within a couple of seconds, also there's plenty of running happening during the course of the trailer. Cross cutting and jump cuts also happen frequently in the trailer which makes you wonder what's going to happen in this film.

SoundParanormal Activity Scream

The makers of paranormal activity went for the feel of a documentary even though it was all scripted out, therefore there was no music that was being played in the background for the trailer. However there was sound with the majority of it being the dialect. Even though there is no music playing in the background there are plenty of distorted sounds such as the unclear buzzing from the change of scenes, screeching, the distinct noise of whispers as well as the more general noises perceived in a horror film like screaming and doors slamming.

On the other hand there is the Scream trailer which differentiates from the paranormal activity trailer as scream is less like a documentary and much more like a movie that attempts to make people jump with the music it uses throughout. The trailer starts off with the sound of a phone ringing and from there you hear a conversation between the antagonist and the protagonist, as the trailer picks up the music gets louder and more intense with the added sound of slashing and screams being heard in the background.

GenreParanormal Activity Scream

It is quite obvious that Paranormal Activity is a horror movie just by taking a glimpse at the trailer. Almost every scene in the trailer has been set in a dark atmosphere to give it that ghostly and mysterious sense. You can also make out that the movie is based on a evil supernatural presence haunting two protagonists. Finally the film review make it clear that the genre is horror as for example there is a film review in the middle of the trailer, where Entertainment Weekly makes the comment “Freaky and terrifying” when describing the movie.

Just like Paranormal Activity it is easy to understand that Scream is a horror movie straight from the start as you are given a hint, when the antagonist asks the protagonist “Do you like scary movies” during a conversation they have over the phone. Furthermore the movie is set at night time which build tension for the viewers. In a few of the scenes you witness a masked man with a knife running around the woods and house chasing the protagonists which evidently displays that this belongs to the genre of horror.

NarrativeParanormal Activity Scream

“After a young, middle class couple moves into a suburban ‘starter’ tract house, they become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be somehow demonic but is certainly most active in the middle of the night. Especially when they sleep. Or try to.”

Reference: Imdb

“One year after the death of Sidney Prescott’s (Campbell) mother, two students turn up gutted. When a serial killer appears, Sidney begins to suspect whether her mothers death and the two new deaths are related. No one is safe, as the killer begins to pick everyone off one by one. Everyone's a suspect in this case.”

Reference: Imdb

RepresentationParanormal Activity Scream

Gender – A man and a woman who are moving into a brand new house which makes them venerable especially when odd things start to occur within the house.Age – Both are in their early to mid twenties.

Gender – It involves a group of teenagers, both boys and girls. This then makes everyone venerable as the killer has lots of targets.Age – These teenagers are aged from around 18-23.

InstitutionsParanormal Activity Scream

Production company of Paranormal Activity is ‘Blumhouse Productions’ and ‘Solana Films’.

The movie is distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Production company of Scream is ‘Woods Entertainment’.

The movie is distributed by Dimension Films.

Values and IdeologyParanormal Activity Scream

The idea of this movie is to help people understand that if you are to ever accidentally buy a haunted house, that you should evacuate as soon as possible rather than try to fight the paranormal being/demon/entity. Because if you are to fight it, there's a good chance that it will end badly to the point that you could die just like it happens in the film.

The moral of this story is not to communicate with a stranger over the phone and to lock your house at night. As seen n the movie if you do not follow these regulations you could suffer severe consequences such as dying and getting killed by a bloodied serial killer.