Textual Analysis of Film Trailers Date

Aims and objectives of Film Trailers A Film trailer is a form of advertising, with the purpose to inform potential audiences about a film with the intention of encouraging people to see the film when they are released either in the cinema or on another platform. A trailer often has a USP (Unique Selling Point) which makes it stand out against other films of the same genre. Trailers often create enigma to create a sense of mystery This helps to attract an audience the trailer will be different to other trailers that have been released of the same genre or the same time. The genre of a film is usually represented in the trailer using elements such as the colours, the setting, cinematography techniques. For example, the cinematography will be jumpy for a horror film, and will most likely include extreme close ups, whereas the cinematography will be fairly slow and relaxed for a romance film. The actors in a trailer can also represent the audience for the target audience for a film, as well as emphasising the genre of the film, especially if the actor is known for a specific genre. For instance, Michael Cera is known for his roles in his romance roles. They can also let people relate to them, which provides the audience with escapism, as suggested in Blumler and Katz’s Uses and Gratifications theory.

Trailer number 1 The Woman in Black http://www. youtube. com/watch The Woman in Black is a thriller, starring Daniel Radcliffe. The Woman in Black was originally a book that was adapted to a stage play. During the opening of the trailer, we can see that CBS Films are the distributors. We can also see that Cross Creek Pictures are the production company, who also produced other thrillers such as ‘Black Swan’. The opening title lacks the name of both the director and the producer. This could be because the director isn’t a well known director, so putting his name down would most likely not serve any purpose. The name of the director is James Watkins, who has also written other horror films such as My Little Eye and Eden Lake.

The opening of the trailer first introduces the audience to the setting, which we can see is a Victorian-style house filled with dusty furniture and children’s toys. The narrative of the trailer starts off with a voice over of a young child saying a poem. Along with the child’s voice, there is the sound of a music box playing. Together, these two things make the audience feel uneasy because these two things should represent innocence. We can also hear in the child’s poem that ‘she’ is referred to a lot. This could also help to create an uneasy atmosphere, as the audience won’t know who she is.

This could also make the audience feel uneasy because the use of she lets the audience know that the film doesn’t fall under typical conventions of horror films, because women are usually the victim rather than the antagonist. The voice over sets the scene, as it introduces the storyline that leads up to the introduction of the protagonist. When the audience first meet the protagonist, we can see that he looks somewhat uncomfortable, which could be something that the audience can relate to, as they may be feeling uncomfortable also, because of the way that they don’t anything either. Todorov’s narrative structure can be applied to the film trailer, as the opening shows the film starting off balanced, as the children’s toys and the protagonist travelling is shown. However, when the Woman in Black is first seen, we can see that there is disruption because the pace of the trailer becomes faster, and the weather is shown to be rainy and dark which adds to the negative atmosphere. The disruption increases as the trailer progresses, and the audience does not see if everything is balanced again in the end, as this will make them curious to know what happens.

Camera work The opening of the trailer starts off by showing the audience close-ups of various toys. These shots all fit to the rule of thirds, as the eyes run across the rule of thirds grid if it was placed there. This makes the eyes stand out more and draws attention to them, and could make it feel more personal to the audience, as they look into the eyes of the toys more than anything else, but also makes them feel somewhat unnerved. The use of children’s toys helps to make the atmosphere feel innocent but creepy at the same time, because people expect them to be child’s toys, but at the same time, people associate them with paranormal films and expect them to do something such as move or talk.

In the beginning of the trailer, the audience is introduced to the setting of the film. We can see two different locations that stand out. Both of these settings look isolated and gloomy, which gives the viewer the impression that the protagonist of the film looks isolated and shut off. The overall look of both of these shots are also somewhat dim with a lot of blue and grey tones, which gives the shots a cold, sad feel. In one shot, there is nothing apart from the protagonist on a horse and carriage, and a cross in the foreground. As these are the only two things in the shot, they both stand out, which can make the viewer associate death the character. This is dramatic irony because the audience can see from the cross that something bad has happened, which will also foreshadow that something bad will happen again.

High angle shots are used to make the protagonist appear weak and vulnerable. We can see this in the establishing shot, because the protagonist looks tiny compared to his isolated surroundings. This is also dramatic irony, because the audience can see that something bad will or already has happened, whereas the protagonist doesn’t realise. This similarly happens in the second shot when he walks into the house, and looks small and weak compared to the large elements of the house. The second shot also feels like a point of view shot, which might make the audience feel like they are standing at the top of the stairs, looking down at the protagonist, which could even make them feel like they are powerful or like they are the antagonist.

Editing Towards the end of the trailer the editing uses quick cuts to help build and to make the viewer question what they have just seen. This can help to create a feeling of fear or tension, which can also make the viewer want to see the film. For instance, multiple scenes are placed together with a blank black shot in between, which makes the trailer continuous and to help it flow better. There is also a use of Parallel Editing. For example, in the trailer we can see some toys moving in the house, followed by the protagonist entering the house that the toys have been seen moving in. This shows that eventually all of the people seen in the shot will meet, which foreshadows that something will happen.

The trailer uses cross-cutting, which is where the scenes are shown in non-chronological order. This can help to make the trailer seem more interesting because it shows us the entertaining scenes throughout the trailer instead of showing them to us all at once. In this trailer, the more exciting and scary scenes are shown close to the end of the trailer, because these are what the viewers will most likely remember.

Sound The trailer uses the sound of a slow, children’s music box, this is incidental music which is played throughout the trailer. The music is in time with the toys in the trailer, which makes the audience associate the beginning of the trailer with children, which helps to create an eerie sense. The music is also in time with the cuts of each shot. For instance, with every chime of the music, the shot cuts to another shot. This happens throughout the trailer, until the end. This can remind the audience about the unsettling atmosphere that we can see in the beginning with the toys. The sound of the children’s music box is also very repetitive, which perhaps foreshadows that the Woman in Black is constantly there.

The trailer uses the sounds of the weather The trailer uses the sounds of the weather. For example, the only sound other than the chiming of the music box that we can hear is the sound of lightening, rain, and howls of the wind. This creates a dark, eerie atmosphere. This is a typical convention of a horror film, as the weather will often set the dark, gloomy scene. The music box that plays along in the background is associated with children, but the sound of the weather alongside this takes away the child-like innocence, which creates an uneasy feeling.

Towards the end of the trailer, there is very little sound Towards the end of the trailer, there is very little sound. We can only hear the music box continuing to play. In these shots at the end, an audience would usually expect to hear the sound of the protagonist screaming, the rain falling, and the crackling from the fire, but all we can hear is the music box. The sound of the music box is asynchronous as it does not fit any of the actions of the screen, which means the viewer has to use their imagination to match up what they see with what they hear. Silence is also used at the beginning and at the end of the trailer. This helps to build tension, as the audience will associate the silence with something bad that will happen. Todorov’s Narrative Structure can also be applied to this, as the silence helps to show how there is not an equilibrium. The silence also, again, makes the audience use their imagination.

Mise En Scene The setting in the trailer constantly appears dark and somewhat isolated. This helps with the sense of fear, as the town appears to be isolated and abandoned. The trailer shows a fence around a house and bars over windows. We view a small part of the trailer through the bars, which makes the characters looked imprisoned and trapped. We can also see a forest setting in the trailer, which follows the conventions of horror films. The character runs through trees that surround him, which also makes the character imprisoned and trapped.

Colour and Lighting The colours that have been used in the trailer are all very dark. Black has been used the most, and this helps to portray the sense of danger and death, which adds to the narrative. The characters are all wearing pale shades of various colours such as pink, yellow and brown, whereas the protagonist wears a dark suit, which makes him stand out.

Mode of Address In the end of the trailer, it talks to the audience by telling us the name of the film and by saying ‘Coming soon’. It shows us this in a ghost-like way that we have already seen throughout the film, by showing it on the window as if someone is writing it on the condensation of the window. T It also shows us a twitter account, which not only helps to make it appeal to a younger audience, but also helps to advertise the film through the social networking site.

Barthe’s Enigma Theory The purpose of this trailer is to create mystery about the film, which will make people curious to see the film. One of the main mysteries that we can see in this trailer is who the Woman in Black is and why she is important to the story. This is not revealed in the trailer, therefore the audience will want to see the film so that they can understand the mystery surrounding the Woman in Black. Another enigma that is created in the trailer is the reason why the protagonist has a link to the Woman in Black. There are also photos in the trailer, that repeatedly shows a family with the eyes scratched out of the photograph. This creates enigma as the audience may want to know who the family are and why the eyes have been scratched out of the picture.

Influence One of the major influences in this trailer are the toys, because they are usually associated with childhood and innocence, and by using them in this way will make the viewer jump and scared more. We have also been influence by this trailer to include Point of View shots, as this lets the viewer feel involved as they see through the point of a character’s eyes and share the emotions that they have. The trailer has no dialogue and only uses the sound of a music box and sound effects, such as noises that will build up tension, which will encourage our audience to use their imagination. This is something we are thinking about using because using your imagination can be more powerful than seeing something. We also want to use Fast Paced editing, which was something people actually picked when we did our questionnaire. We like the way that the fast paced cuts create a ‘countdown’ as it builds up to the most jumpy parts of the trailer. We think this is a successful element as it makes audiences feel uneasy, which is typical for the genre of the trailer.