Codes and Conventions of Film Trailers

Film trailers have to follow certain rules when they create it. Depending on what genre the film is the company who are creating the trailer must follow certain guidelines which all trailers in that genre must follow. This is so the film has the right kind of appeal to the audience and also so the audience know what genre the film is going to be. This can determine whether they will go and watch it. They must also think of the length of the trailer. Only once a year a trailer is allowed over the two minute thirty second mark. That one trailer will probably be the film that has a big budget and is the blockbuster. However all the rest must stay the same and be under the time limit. Also they must also have the film name at the end of the trailer. This then lets the audience know what the film is called when they want to search for it. They also on most trailers have the date for the release of the film at the end of the trailer after the name or below the name of the film. They might also add the main actor’s names in during the trailer. This can sell a film if big name actors are in it. This will bring the money in as audiences will come to watch it.

Horror trailer Conventions

All of the horror trailers have techniques that are replicated throughout. The first example is the quick cuts between pictures. The cuts make the suspense rise in the audience. This is an important part within the horror trailer category. This allows the audience to distinguish what the genre of the film will be in some cases. Another thing that they do in most horror trailers is that they don't show the monster or evil that is in it. If they showed this there would be no need for the audience to go and watch it at the cinema. So by doing this it creates suspense and entices the audience to go and watch it. With horror film all being the same when one challenges the conventions of a horror trailer it can either be really good and stand out or it can have bad effects on the sale of he film. With people following the normal conventions not one horror film is different.

Save The Cat- 10 Genre Types

Save The Cat- 10 Genres

• Monster in the House- Monster in the house genre is the genre of film when people are scared. You could say that horror films are under this genre because of the this. Its about not getting killed throughout the course of the film. Examples of this include Devil Inside, Prometheus and The Last Exorcism.
• Golden Fleece- The golden fleece genre is about a hero at the start of a film and throughout the course of the film finds things and finds things about himself/herself. Examples of these types of films include After Earth, Oblivion and Star Wars.
• Out of the Bottle- out of the bottle are films that wishes people have come true and problems other people have go away because of strange things happening. Examples of films like this include Bruce Almighty, Evan Almighty and Freaky Friday.
• Dude with a Problem- This genre shows a character in a certain light and what their life is like however they have one problem and throughout the course of the film they try to correct that problem and make everything better. Examples of this type of film include Die Hard and Oblivion.
• Rites of Passage- This is about when life changing things happen within a story and then they try to fix them throughout the remainder of the film. An example of this could be in some parts Looper.
• Buddy Love- This is about two people are really close to each other mate wise and they do everything together and through the film you can see what it is like to live with them. Examples of this are Dumb & Dumber and Dumb & Dumberer.
• Whydunit- This genre is finding out who did something and why they did it. For example if someone committed a murder they need to find out who is the killer and why they are killing people. Examples of this genre include Minority Report.
• The Fool Triumphant- This film genre is about people who struggle in life and aren't the brightest of people however they come good in the end and its a happy ending. Example of this are Forrest Gump.
• Institutionalised- This is when a group of people come together then the film is based around them as a group. All they do individually also may come under the film. Example of this is One Flew Over The Cuckoo Nest.
• Superhero- This is when one person realises in the story that he has skills that no other person has and these extraordinary abilities allows him to save the world from disasters and enemies who want to cause evil and murder. Examples of this include Man Of Steel, Iron Man 3 and The Amazing Spider Man.

Trailer Terminology

• Trailer: A trailer is a video that lasts up to 2mins 30secs maximum. It shows a series of shots from a film so these shots will be put in a way so it entices the audience to come and and spend their money to watch that film at the cinema or buy the DVD.
• Plot: A plot is the story within a film. This shows the audience what a film is about and who is in it and whats what. However within a film trailer they don't want to give away the plot totally as there would be no point the audience coming to see it so they miss the important/key scenes out but use some to entice and excite the audience.
• Voice-over: A voice-over is where an individual narrates/speaks over the trailer. They do this to add to the thrill or tension in the trailer. The narration normally ends with saying the title.
• Music: Music throughout a trailer helps the tone of the trailer and produces the right feel for the trailer. It gets the feel across to the audience more.