In class analysis of teaser trailers
- 1. In class Analysis of Teaser TrailersAs an introduction to teaser trailers and analysing them; we looked at them together in class. Looking at a wide variety of different types of teaser trailers for diferent films.
- 2. InceptionInception’s teaser trailer is around a minute long which is aroud average, despite its length it is very fast pace and shows quite a few clips from the film. However if you have seen the film you realise that the action clips shown are only 2 or 3 of the action sequences that take place in the film. So they are not giving away too much of the plot or the film. There is no dialogue in the teaser, which is common, as they rely on the background music to: set the tone of the film, convey the genre and highlight specific titles with ‘big booms’ such as the directors. The only two names that are shown are Christopher Nolan’s a director famous from his film the Dark Knight which is also mentioned. As well as Leonardo Dicaprio, the leading actor in the film. Although there is no specific release date; they tell us that it will be out in Summer 2010, this gives us a time frame. The colours used in this teaser trailer also give an impression of the genre o the film, as well as the mood and style which you can almost guess if you know the previous films the director has created. The trailer is almost confusing and this is suggestive that if you do not understand the trailer you will never understand the film, however it does well what it is designed to do : tease the audience about the upcoming film to make them more interested in it.
- 3. Cemetery JunctionCemetery Junction’s teaser could not be more different from Inception’s. The teaser consist’s of all dialogue, from the film’s two directors and comedians Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Creating a teaser trailer like this is actually very risky however very original. From the moment that Gervais and Merchant announce their new film, we can already guess that the genre of the film will be comedy. As the two directors are speaking through the minute making jokes, there is no need for any background music. Although there is a comic use of an american voice over, which is sarcasim as this film is not an american block buster as you would expect to follow such a voice. The colours they use also do not give away anything about the film as all they ue is black and white. The only hint that we get from this teaser trailer is that it is set in the past as the font they use looks slightly retro. The trailer does make you interested in the film and therefore is doing its job, however I believe it doesnt works as well as Inception. As it is gambelling purely on the popularity of it’s two directors.
- 4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless MindEternal Sunshine of the spotless mind was an independant film, are therefore had more to loose if the film did not sell. The teaser trailer and any other kind of advitisement of the film was key, this might be why they gave away the plot of the film in this very short minute and a half. However the genre of the film is unclear, it is suggested to be comedy but a lot of the clips shown seem to be quite intense. It uses a mixture of dialogue and background music, they use a popular upbeat song ie. Mr. Bue Sky by Electric Light Orchastera. Like Inception it shows all the big names that are starring in the film., in a way again to tempt you to come see the film as it should do. Again like the others, the cuts of the clips are fast and in time with music, so not to give to much of the footage away. This trailers graphics are also very impressive , especially at the start of the film, which could intice audience as it makes the film look big budget.The trailer is clever as it uses Juxtoposition, the advert is so colourful and happy when we can tell from the clips that this is not reflected in the film well atleast not completely. Another reason why it is unclear what genre the film is. Despite this I believe it is a good teaser for the film.
- 5. Paranormal ActivityIs also quite different from normal teasers like Cemetery Junction ; as to show how scary the film is it mixes clips from the film itself with clips of an actual audiences reaction to the film. Like Inception it ues ‘big booms’ to add to the effect of certain clips, added with the dialogue from some of the clips . The genre is clearly given away by the audience reactio and by the shots they use, this teaser again like the others uses fast shots however mixes it with longer ones as so we can see some of the scary elements of the film. Paranormal Activity is unlike any of the other trailers as it uses reviews to sell the film, as normally the film would not have been shown to anyone, so there would beNo reviews to quote. What is amusing though is that the quotes they have preceded to use are from really obscure magazines and websites. This makes the trailer almost funny, which is not the disered effect. This is why I do not believe it is a very good teaser trailer however it does convey the genre of the film, and this trailer would probably not deter those fans who enjoy this genre of film.
- 6. Die Hard 4.0Die Hard is the only film teaser trailer for us to analysis that is a sequal to previous films, this makes it harder to keep the audience in suspense for longer as the minute they see the lead actor they will no what film it is. There is very little dialogue in this teaser, there is only one line at the very end and it is very used very effectively, it makes the audiencelaugh on almost the last note of the trailer. Like the others it announces the lead actor even though there is almost no need to, as we all know Die Hard stars Bruce Willis. Like the other trailers it estabishes genre quickly with its fast pace of different action shots. However unlike the Trailers he titles of the film is very small, as well as the release date coming at the start, this could be because the day they have choosen for release is a national holiday in America so would be easy to remember. However it is still a good teaser, I believe that sometimes the best teasers are for sequals where they do not need to show you barely anything yet you still really want to see it.
- 7. ConclusionThe teaser trailers we looked at were all good, but all very different. However you can not completely compare them to one another as they are all for completely different genre’s of film so are trying to attract different audiences to see their film. However I can take my analysis of these trailers, and use it to help when creating my own.