CONVENTIONS OF TRAILERS

BY L`VIANY CLAIS & JANE TURNER

CONVENTIONS OF TRAILERS IN GENERAL

TRAILERS HAVE DIFFERENT CONVENTIONS FOR TRAILERS IN GENERAL:

• FILM PRODUCTION LOGO – NORMALLY AT THE FIRST PART OF THE TRAILER, THE FILM PRODUCTION LOGO WOULD BE SEEN. THIS IS A GOOD WAY FOR THE PRODUCTION TO BENEFIT FORM THE PROFIT.

• FILM TITLE – THE FILM TITLE HAS TO BE IN EVERY TRAILER OTHERWISE THE AUDIENCE WOULD NOT KNOW WHICH FILM THIS TRAILER IS FOR.

• BBFC AGE CERTIFICATION - ANY FILM THAT IS RELEASED UK NEEDS TO HAVE AN AGE CERTIFICATE. THIS IS USUALLY SHOWN AT THE END OF THE TRAILER.

• SOCIAL MEDIA – THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS NEW FOR TRAILERS PUTTING URL WEBSITE SUCH AS TWITTER OR FACEBOOK SO THAT PEOPLE CAN FOLLOW.

• CHARACTER INTRODUCTION – THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES OF A FILM TRAILER. THIS IS IMPORTANT AS AN AUDIENCE GETS MORE PLEASURE FROM FILM`S BY ALREADY KNOWING SOME OF THE CHARACTERS.

• MUSIC AND VOICE OVER'S - THIS IS ANOTHER IMPORTANT IN A TRAILER AS MUSIC IS THE KEY INTO MAKING A TRAILER. MUSIC AND VOICE OVER NORMALLY HELP SHOW THE PACE, GENRE AND SOMETIMES THE BUDGET.

• NAME CAPTION – IN EVERY TRAILER THERE IS A NAME CAPTION THESE CAN EITHER BE ACTORS NAMES, PRODUCERS NAMES OR DIRECTORS NAMES.

• TIME LENGTH – A FILM NORMALLY HAS ONE OR MORE TRAILER MADE. IN EACH TRAILER THERE ARE DIFFERENT SECTIONS OF THE FILM WHICH HAVE BEEN EDITED TOGETHER. TRAILERS USUALLY LAST FOR 1:30- 2:00 MINUTES. HOWEVER IN GENRES SUCH AS HORROR, PRODUCERS OFTEN PRODUCE A 10 SECOND TRAILERS WHICH USUALLY HELP BUILD HYPE.

• RELEASED DATE – THE IS VERY IMPORTANT AS IT HELPS ATTRACT A LARGE AUDIENCE. ON THE DAY OF THE OPENING OF A FILM`S RELEASE.

CONVENTIONS OF HORROR TRAILERS • COLOUR – COLOUR IS AN IMPORTANT TOOLS IN CREATING A GOOD HORROR

TRAILER. USUALLY DARKS SCENES AND DARK COLOURS ARE USED ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE TRAILER. THIS IS SUPPOSED TO OBSCURE THE AUDIENCE`S VIEW ON WHAT IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING WHICH THEN CREATES A SENSE OF FEAR BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO IDEA OF WHAT IS COMING NEXT.

• DIVERSE CAMERA ANGLES – A WIDE RANGE OF CAMERA ANGLES ARE USED IN HORROR TRAILERS. THIS TECHNIQUE GIVES THE AUDIENCE THE ILLUSION THAT THIS IS REAL LIFE. FURTHERMORE HORRORS ARE NORMALLY MADE UP OR COME FROM REAL STORIES, IN ORDER TO LET THE AUDIENCE BELIEVE IN WHAT THEY ARE SEEING IS REAL CAMERA SHOTS FROM DIFFERENT ANGLES ATTRACT THE AUDIENCE IN.

• VOICE OVER – THE VOICE OVER`S ARE NORMALLY HEARD THROUGH THE FIRST THIRD OF THE HORROR TRAILER WHICH GIVES THE AUDIENCE AN IDEA OF WHAT THE FILM IS ABOUT.

• SPEED OF EDITING & MUSIC – IN GENERAL TRAILERS ALLOWS START WITH A LONG SHOTS AND LESS CAMERA MOVEMENTS. EERIE MUSIC IS PLAYED THROUGH HORROR TRAILERS. AT THE BEGINNING OF THE HORROR TRAILER IT HAS A VERY HIGH PITCH, A LOW TEMPO AND IT`S NOT VERY LOUD. THE CUTS ARE VERY SHARP BECAUSE THE CAMERA WOULD NORMALLY JUMP FROM ONE SCENE TO THE OTHER. THE SPEED OF MUSIC AS WELL WITH EDITING KEEP INCREASING THROUGHOUT THE TRAILER. SOMETIMES THE MUSIC WOULD CHANGE DURING DIFFERENT SCENES AND ALSO IN TEMPO WHICH HELPS BUILD TENSION.

• STING – THE STING IS USUALLY THE FINAL COUPLES OF SHOT IN THE HORROR TRAILER WHICH ARE SHOWN JUST AFTER THE FILM TITLE HAS BEEN SHOWN. THIS STING IS LIKE THE FINAL SURPRISE IN ORDER TO SCARE THE AUDIENCE WHICH PREPARES THEM FORM THE FILM.

• CHARACTER INTRODUCTION – THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES OF A FILM TRAILER. THIS IS IMPORTANT AS AN AUDIENCE GETS MORE PLEASURE FROM FILM`S BY ALREADY KNOWING SOME OF THE CHARACTERS.

• GENRE SPECIFIC ICONOGRAPHY - CAMERA SHOTS OR ANGLE, SOUND, IMAGES AS WELL AS OBJECT HELP CREATE THE FEATURES OF A SPECIFIC SUB-GENRE. FOR EXAMPLE SUPERNATURAL THERE WOULD BE: SPIRITS, NIGHT VISION, DARK SCENES ETC.