Chosen Trailer Genre - Horror Thriller (& Genre Codes and Conventions)

I have chosen to create a trailer for a horror thriller film because I enjoyed creating a film opening sequence of the same genre for my AS Media Studies coursework last year and would like to experiment further with different ways to create film footage within the horror thriller genre.

Codes and Conventions within this genre:

Technical Conventions:

• Canted angles are typically used within the horror genre in order to create confusion as well as to disorientate the audience. 
• Long tracking shots create tension as there are no cuts to divert the viewers attention, keeping the audience focused on the screen.
• POV shots allow the audience to see things from the characters perspective. This is particularly effective in horror films where there is a clear protagonist and antagonist in the film. POV shots from the protagonists perspective allows the audience to place themselves in the characters shoes - viewing what the victim can see in scary situations cause the audience to become scared themselves. However, an antagonistic POV shot could act as dramatic irony, and therefore could build up feelings of suspense within the audience as the victim could be shown onscreen unaware that the protagonist is watching them. 
• Extreme close ups are used to show a characters facial expressions - their fear and emotions.
• Sudden sounds during quiet silent scenes causes tension. Examples of this includes gun shots, the rustling of trees, screams..
• Slow paced editing creates an unsettling feeling within the viewer. Long build ups which lead to jump scares suspense the audience. 
• Depth of field is used to focus on the protagonists character. Consequently, the background of the scene is blurred which is particularly effective when the audience cannot clearly see any movements made behind the character, causing them to apprehend what is to happen next. 

Common Themes:

• The supernatural
• Religion (religious cults such as Satanism are commonly used in films with this particular theme)
• Insanity
• The living dead (zombie apocalypse, vampires..)
• Revenge
• Good vs evil

Symbolic Conventions:

• Colours which are predominantly used throughout this particular genre are red connoting danger and blood, and black. The colour black connotes death and evil. 

Sound:

• audio 

Setting:

• Haunted houses are most commonly used in the horror/thriller genre, and are usually set in old, derelict or abandoned houses. Conventional haunted houses 
• Suburban homes
• Rural settings
• Grave yards

Research - Trailer Conventions

Codes and conventions are aspects of film trailers and are what an audience would typically expect to see whilst viewing them. There is a variety of conventions used in film trailers which are key to allowing the audience to identify the essential aspects of a film, including its plot and genre. As well as this, common features of film trailers assist the audience in deciding whether or not they would want to watch the film.
Teaser trailers often contain similar conventions to those used in main theatrical trailers, although are dependent on strong editing and an emphasised soundtrack to put across the films genre due to the short amount of running time it possesses in comparison to the films main theatrical trailer.
Typical conventions of a film trailer include:

Production Information:

Film production and distribution company idents are shown at the beginning of the trailer, which contributes to informing the audience of the film's genre. The reputation of the production company can hugely benefit the marketing and promotion of a film, especially if its the first thing an audience sees when watching a film trailer. If an audience has enjoyed films from a particular production company in the past, they are more likely to want to watch a more recent film after seeing the same production company's ident at the beginning of a trailer.

An example of a Warner Brothers film production company ident for their trailer for Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone, released in 2001. Although generally production and distribution companies include their idents at the very start of the trailer, the Warner Brothers company ident is shown onscreen 18 seconds into this particular trailer, with a brief array of footage which introduces the main character of the film; Harry Potter.

An example of the Warner Brothers ident for 2009's Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. 

Length:

Trailers are often around 2 and a half minutes long (or slightly less). This timing is suitable in regards to attracting its audience with the amount of information about the film given, yet ensuring that not too much of the plot line is disclosed.

Billing Block:

A billing block is typically included towards the end of the trailer after the films title is announced; this includes information about the films director, age certificate, cast, music, production company, website and release date. A billing block is used to provide the audience with any additional information they may need about the films release. Social networking sites are often included

Billing Block used in the 2001 trailer for Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone.

Plot Summary:

The majority of - if not all- film trailers consist of a montage of key important events which take place throughout the film. However, distributors ensure that the vast majority of the films storyline is left undisclosed from its audience as to create a build up of anticipation within consumers.

Character Introductions:

Film trailers usually introduce the main character(s) of the film. Where well-known Hollywood actors would increase a films popularity and reputation, it is crucial for film distributors to introduce their characters within a theatrical trailer regardless of whether their product has a respected cast.

Chosen Media - Film Trailer

I aim to make a film trailer as the outcome of my A2 Media Studies coursework because I like the idea of cutting down the duration of a film into the most suspenseful parts and compiling the clips together in order to promote the overall product. I also had the option to create a short film or a music video as part of my coursework, however decided that a trailer would be more interesting to make as well as to research and plan. I feel as though I could experiment with different ways of putting together a film trailer, other than having to follow a chronological order linear narrative when creating a music video or short film.