The trailer opens with no diegetic sounds and a series of low speed editing close ups of the body of a young girl, immediately objectifying her, the shallow depth of field highlights how she was the only thing of interest to her captors.
There is then two extreme close ups of the eyes of a man and woman, giving a creepy feeling about them, as conveying the idea of them watching the younger girl as these shots are placed straight after the close ups of her.
Once the car door shuts the shot cuts to black, synchronous to the sound of it slam and the production information is displayed
There is then a slow-motion, brightly lit flashback to when the girl was far younger, her happiness there is juxtaposed immediately with the shot places next to it of her in the present day, bound and gagged in a very darkly lit shot
This is a blurry point of view shot from the girl of her captor, clearly displaying her confusion of what is happening
We hear a voiceover of the female captor discussing how the girls mum does not care about her, contrasted with a silent pan from a missing poster to a close up of the girl's mum's terrified face
There is then a close up of what looks like a blood splattered floor, though it is unclear where of why this blood is here, adding a chilling mystery to the trailer. On the top of this if places the logos of various film festivals where this was screened and received awards, conveying to an audience that it is well critically acclaimed
After this there is a series of blurred close ups, several tinted red, a common theme in the thriller genre because of its connotations with blood and danger
During this the voiceover continues, conveying the disputes between the two captors and the insecurities of the woman that the girl is attempting to manipulate for her freedom
The key actors names are then displayed over the top of a high angle landscape shot, illustrating how isolated the girl is from the rest of society.
The voiceover switches to the man and becomes a creepy whisper and the editing speed also becomes gradually increasingly faster.
This continues until a dark, long shot mid of the man walking into the room where the girl is kept prisoner. He very slowly shuts the door on the camera which remains outside, leaving the lasting image in the viewers mind of the screaming helpless girl as the shot cuts to black.
Over the top of this is loud non diegetic static which cuts out almost immediately as the title of the film is displayed, backed by silence, forcing an audience member to truly think about what they have just seen
The title once more makes use of a vibrant red colour, and it can be seen here that is it used not just for its connotations with danger but also for its strong connotations of love and passion.
The trailer then ends with the production information, backed by the same silence as the title.
The trailer opens with low speed editing and no non diegetic audio, the only sound being diegetic speech and background office noises
The shot is low key side lit with a large amount of brown and the main protagonist is looking away from the camera, eating a sandwich, creating a dreary and very dull working environment.
The production information is then displayed and over the top of this non diegetic, very orchestral music begins, contrapuntal to the mundane cleaning tasks the character is carrying out
The music begins to crescendo as the editing speed picks up and the shots become far more often close ups
Static sounds begin to be places on top of the music, creating a sense of confusion and hinting that something untoward if going to happen
At just after 30 seconds into the trailer you see a gun shot and there is a sudden change in both the pacing and the mood
The previous non diegetic music cuts out and instead is replaced by eerie singing
Another clear juxtaposition is the colour, the first half of the trailer is full of yellows and browns but after the switch everything becomes blues, the complete opposite on the colour wheel, possibly to highlight a hugely influential change in the protagonists life
We see shots of him, a complete contrast to earlier in the trailer, with a bloody long hair and beard, though it is un clear whether this happens before of after the events earlier in the trailer, keeping a strong air of mystery around the film, not giving too much away
There is then a series of picturesque wide landscape shots with critics reviews placed over them, the snowing weather and the melancholic song gives a downcast mood to these shots
As the song reaches it's climax, diegetic gun shots as well as a baby crying are all placed on top, paired with an extremely fast editing montage, displaying all the many thoughts rushing through his mind that he is unable to escape
This montage is crosscut with shots of TV static, again reinforcing the idea that he is trapped in someone else's game
The trailer ends with the editing speed returning to slow and you seeing him blow out a candle then the shot cut to black
The intense sounds of before cut out an the melancholic singing returns quietly fading out over the film title and the final shot, which for the first time combines the two half of the trailer by pairing together both the yellow and the blue in a single shot, signifying the reunification of the two septette parts of his life and a feeling that he is at peace almost, which is also seen in the quiet end to the singing.
The trailer opens with a wide shot of a man, immediately highlighting him as the protagonist of the film
Over the top of this shot there is a voiceover, asking what you would do if you knew some one was going to die, followed by a very high speed edited montage of various dead bodies, topped with non diegetic camera flashes, linking to both the title of the film and the camera in the mans hands in the opening shot.
The shot then cuts to black and the sound cuts out
A J cut is then used to show the man from the first shot asking these words to his friend, in a low key lit mid shot
The production information is then displayed, from the title of the production company, "chiller films" and their blood red logo, it is made clear that this film is of the thriller/ horror genre within the first 5 seconds of the trailer
Creepy music begins, while the editing speed returns to low, slowing down the pace of the trailer
We see a wide shot of the man in a deserted children's playground, which is a common theme in the horror genre
There is an eyeliner match between him and the photograph he's looking out and we then see a fast paced montage of a series of photographs of dead bodies, helping to disorientate and confuse the watcher, just like the man has been
To back up this feeling of confusion the shots become shaky and handheld and various coloured lights are placed on top of the shots, which repeatedly cut to black, synchronous to changes in the music.
We see a mid tracking shot, behind him, coming slowly closer, to create the feeling of him being watched and his entrapment in his own mind.
It becomes clearer as the trailer progresses that he is loses is mind as we see a shot reverse shot between him and his girlfriend with blood coming out of her in the reverse shot, displaying how he sees the world.
The pace of the trailer gradually increases as it nears the end, this is seen in the editing speed, the increase in drums in the music and the content of the shots themselves.
We see guns, blood and fire all common themes in the thriller and horror all in quick succession, rapidly changing the mood of the trailer.
The trailer then ends with a cut to black with a voiceover, to put emphasis on it and make it stick in your mind. Then in the usual format the title is displayed, then the release date, both using the same blood red colour of earlier in the trailer.
The trailer opens with the production company "A24"
Over the top of this can be heard a young girl singing, which continues throughout the trailer, giving a very minimalistic stripped back soundtrack, helping to give a very eerie feeling to the trailer.
There is a series of wide, brightly lit and coloured shots of a girl and boy in the park. This location has connotations of innocence and youth, tricking a watcher into a false sense of safety.
A J cut is then used, revealing this girl as the singing voice that can be heard throughout the trailer.
We see a mid shot of them walking and while he looks over at her, her body language remains stiff as she stares at the ground, hinting within the first 5 seconds that this may not be your usual team love story.
The editing then cuts to a birds eye shot of a very white, sterile looking building, where we see a brightly dressed child suddenly collapse, paired with a synchronous crash placed over the singing
There is then a screen to show that this is the same director as the Lobster, using the well known black and white theme and font associated with that film, helping to build on a ready made fanbase.
There is then a series of close up shots of different members of the cast, possibly the boys family, all looking terrified and upset, building the emotional connection of a viewer with them.
We then see a series of several reviews, crosscut into the trailer, all using the same font style, to create a more memorable brand behind the film.
We then hear several snippets of diegetic conversation over the top of the singing, discussing who can "kill a patient" and asking "how did his father die", these morbid topics again point towards the plot of the film, and interspersed with emotionless close ups of the girl hint that she may be behind this suffering, without giving anything away.
We see a mid shot of the girl with a lighter, conveying possibly the message behind the song she is singing "Burn", her clothes and hair look dirty and unwashed, suggesting she has been through a lot to get to this point, and the knee on the right hand side of the frame appears to be covered in blood.
The opening ends with a series of dark low key shots, a contrast to the opening of the trailer
The trailer then ends with the title of the film shown, paired with complete silence apart from the song creepily fading out into nothingness.
The trailer opens with everything seemingly okay, there is a slow editing speed between a series pastel colour graded wide shots to create a sense of innocence.
This is then paired with light piano music again reinforcing the idea that this is just an ordinary holiday this woman is on and that she (and the audience) should have nothing to be afraid of
When she first bumps into Andy the editing speed picks up and there is a series of quickly paced, moving mid shots, circling around the two of them, giving an almost disorientating feel to it
There is a very shallow depth of field on all of the shots of the two of them, highlighting that she is all that is important to him and that he wishes to block out the rest of the world from them both
The production company is then displayed
There is a clear turning point in the trailer, the peripeteia, straight after we here the woman speak of leaving
This is highlighted by a darkly lit, low key close up shot of the man's eyes looking straight up into the camera which slowly fades to black. Paired with a synchronous crash in the soundtrack and the abrupt end to the previous calm piano music.
The trailer than displays that is was chosen for the Sundance film festival, conveying that it is critically acclaimed and hints at the genre of the film.
There is a symmetrical close up shot of the door, illustrating that she has been looked in, followed by a montage of her attempting and failing various escapes
This is made increasingly eerie by the limited non diegetic sound
The dark empty wide shots of the surrounding contrasted with the close up closed frame shots of the female protagonist help to ass to the feeling of her isolation
Quotes from citics reviews are placed over the shots, once more showing and audience the film is critically acclaimed
The trailer ends with the music cutting out synchronous to the shot changing to a wide shot of Andy leading her away from the house, out into a forest, leaving the unanswered question in the watchers mind of what he intends to do to her
Then following the usual format the trailer ends with the title followed by the release date of the film, paired with a non diegetic crash.
The trailer opens with a close up shot of the main characters pocket watch, introduces a frequent motif during the film and straight away highlights how the concept of time will be vital to the plot of the film
The shot is accompanied by a quick diegetic ticking noise, adding the feeling of time running out
This is then backed up by a voiceover, introducing the idea of time travel
The editing speed begins very slow giving the audience a chance to become accustomed to the principles of the plot
There is then a close up of a gun shot, synchronous to electronic music being and the production information being displayed
After the production information the editing speed picks up and the shots change from one shots of him alone to several two shots of him with various suited men
The repeated close ups of guns and cars as well as business men, help to identify the genre of the thriller
The non diegetic voice over by the main character continues throughout the trailer, explaining the rules of his job which will make the key foundations of the films plot.
We then see an eye line match between an extreme close up of the main character and his older self, introducing a new element to the film.
After this the action builds further, the voiceover stops and is replaced with several diegetic yells followed by an electronic soundtrack.
Over this music there is a montage of some of the most dramatic clips from the movie, crosscut with titles displaying the names of the key cast and crew members, before ending with the name of the film and release date.
All film trailers, despite the genre will display the production companies logos, sometimes there can be more than one for a higher budget film.
This usually during the first thirty seconds of a trailer.
Companies to this to help stick in an audiences mind that this film was made by them, hugely boasting their publicity
The production logo can also immediately signpost to an audience what sort of film it will be, for example union seeing the Pixar or DreamWorks logo a viewer knows to likely expect a fun, family friendly film.
Film Title
The film title usually appears at the end of the film trailer in large font, grabbing attention
A lot can be told about the film genre from the colours and fonts used in this title
Common conventions of the thriller and horror trailer would be bold red, white and black, which can be seen in both the Seven and Captain America film titles
Plot
Trailers aim to give an audience an idea of the content of the film, without giving away too much
A good trailer will pick up the most exciting, funny or scary parts, depending on the genre of the film and cut them together to give the viewer a short taster of what watching the whole film would be like
However a bad trailer will give away the whole plot of the film or display all of the best moments of the film so when you actually watch it there is little left of interest.
Famous Actors/ Directors
Film trailers will often make use of their most well known star by placing them in the opening scene of the trailer, grabbing an audiences attention and creating a guaranteed fanbase for the film
Above you can see two examples of this, the trailer for Seven opening with Brad Pitt and the trailer for Inception opening with Leonardo DiCaprio
Well known actors and directors names will also be displayed in large font across the trailer, again to bring more publicity to the film
Soundtrack/ Voiceover
A clever soundtrack is essential to a good trailer, it can display the genre, pacing, mood and budget of a film
A voiceover can be used to narrate the action from an external speaker with non diegetic sound or by a character actually in the trailer
In the thriller genre the music is used to intensity the action taking place and is a vital part in the building of suspense.
Length
Trailers can vary in length but will usually stick between 1:30 to 2:00 minutes
Release Date
Right at the end of the film trailer the release date will be shown in a large font to make sure it is what stays in the audiences mind so they will not forget to go see the film and to build excitement
