Research into Trailers and Practical Work - Summary
The main thing I have learnt about trailers so far is that a lot of shots are used, usually around 50 to make the average length trailer. These shots are taken from all different parts of the film and are not necessarily in chronological order. However they are put in a careful order to get across the narrative to the audience. They are also used to get across the genre of the film. For example, if the film were an action film they would use the most action packed bits from the film to put in the trailer. If the film were a comedy, they would use the funniest bits of the film in trailer as well.
Each shot usually only lasts for a couple of seconds. This is because trailers are usually very fast paced to keep the audience interested. They also end on a cliff hanger so the audience want to go and see the film to find out what happens.
Each shot usually only lasts for a couple of seconds. This is because trailers are usually very fast paced to keep the audience interested. They also end on a cliff hanger so the audience want to go and see the film to find out what happens.
A typical way to get across to the audience what is happening would be to add a voiceover. This can be the classic cinema voiceover, usually male, giving a sense of the plot and toine, but can sometimes include dialogue from the film that will help explain what the film is about. Until I began my research, I had assumed that understanding of trailers is mainly based on visual images, but now I realise that sound is actually vital. In our initial planning, we have not paid enough attention to how much dialogue can help us out and establish key plot points quickly and easily, and this is something we must address.
The use of sound can also convey the genre of the film. If the music is light-hearted the film itself is likely to be light-hearted. Likewise, if the soundtrack was scary music then it would be likely that the film was scary also. Sound can also help with the pace of the trailer, keeping it exciting for the audience so they stay interested throughout and want to see the film at the end of it. Often music is used to generate the main emotion - a swellign chorus for very emotional moments for example, or eerie music with a sudden loud sound to make the audience jump. I have learned that the choice of music and sound doesn't just reflect the emotion on screen, it can actually generate it and make otherwise unremarkable shots have a real impact.
From our experiment with planning a trailer, I have realised we will need lots of different shots as we needed to make around 2 minutes of film out of 2 second shots. I also realise that we need access to numerous locations to film as it needs to look like the shots have been taken from a variety of scenes from a film. This means we will have to choose a practical story line where we can get realistic locations and actors that we have easy access to as this will be time-consuming filming and will probably need several 'bites' at it to work well.
We will also need to make sure the trailer makes sense to the audience and that they will be able to understand what the film is about. We need to think how we can go about doing this, e.g. using a voiceover or some kind of structuring device that divides shots into themes / ideas. Music can be used to provide structure with a change in music dictating a change in mood / pace. i have also noticed that transitions e.g. fade to black are often used to divide the trailer into sections with different tones. We need to keep the trailer exciting and interesting to the audience so need to think about particular shots that will do this whilst getting across the type of film to the audience. Also, we need to think about what shots we will need to ensure our trailer ends on a cliff hanger so the audience is enticed into watching the film - as that is what trailers are for.
When doing our practice trailer we made a number of mistakes. Firstly, we didn’t film enough shots and so our trailers were very short. This is because although it seemed like we had a lot of footage, once those shots are cut down, we were left with the bare minimum. We filmed too much of scenes that we only needed a few seconds of. The shots we filmed also lasted too long to be trimmed a lot so were left with a few long shots rather than lots of short ones, meaning it wasn’t very fast-paced and exciting. We also spent too long filming each shot so ran out of time quickly which is something we will need to think about when filming our real trailer. We also went off filming with a very vague idea of what our story was about and therefore ended up with footage that didn’t go with what we had initially intended our story to be as we changed our minds as we went along. This is going to be important - we must share a clear idea of what the whole film is about to know what we need to convey to our audience. We actually need to know this in much more detail than can be shown in the trailer or it will lack coherence. We also didn’t think about what order we would put it in or how we would edit it. This shows that we need to plan out our story properly, shot for shot and when and where we will film it- it will save time filming and ensure we have a story that ends on a cliff hanger and is understandable to the audience.
When thinking about our film we will also have to think about what editing tools we have access too. For example if we planned to involve a time change in the film we would have to think what editing tools we would need to make this obvious to the audience.
KatherineThe use of sound can also convey the genre of the film. If the music is light-hearted the film itself is likely to be light-hearted. Likewise, if the soundtrack was scary music then it would be likely that the film was scary also. Sound can also help with the pace of the trailer, keeping it exciting for the audience so they stay interested throughout and want to see the film at the end of it. Often music is used to generate the main emotion - a swellign chorus for very emotional moments for example, or eerie music with a sudden loud sound to make the audience jump. I have learned that the choice of music and sound doesn't just reflect the emotion on screen, it can actually generate it and make otherwise unremarkable shots have a real impact.
From our experiment with planning a trailer, I have realised we will need lots of different shots as we needed to make around 2 minutes of film out of 2 second shots. I also realise that we need access to numerous locations to film as it needs to look like the shots have been taken from a variety of scenes from a film. This means we will have to choose a practical story line where we can get realistic locations and actors that we have easy access to as this will be time-consuming filming and will probably need several 'bites' at it to work well.
We will also need to make sure the trailer makes sense to the audience and that they will be able to understand what the film is about. We need to think how we can go about doing this, e.g. using a voiceover or some kind of structuring device that divides shots into themes / ideas. Music can be used to provide structure with a change in music dictating a change in mood / pace. i have also noticed that transitions e.g. fade to black are often used to divide the trailer into sections with different tones. We need to keep the trailer exciting and interesting to the audience so need to think about particular shots that will do this whilst getting across the type of film to the audience. Also, we need to think about what shots we will need to ensure our trailer ends on a cliff hanger so the audience is enticed into watching the film - as that is what trailers are for.
When doing our practice trailer we made a number of mistakes. Firstly, we didn’t film enough shots and so our trailers were very short. This is because although it seemed like we had a lot of footage, once those shots are cut down, we were left with the bare minimum. We filmed too much of scenes that we only needed a few seconds of. The shots we filmed also lasted too long to be trimmed a lot so were left with a few long shots rather than lots of short ones, meaning it wasn’t very fast-paced and exciting. We also spent too long filming each shot so ran out of time quickly which is something we will need to think about when filming our real trailer. We also went off filming with a very vague idea of what our story was about and therefore ended up with footage that didn’t go with what we had initially intended our story to be as we changed our minds as we went along. This is going to be important - we must share a clear idea of what the whole film is about to know what we need to convey to our audience. We actually need to know this in much more detail than can be shown in the trailer or it will lack coherence. We also didn’t think about what order we would put it in or how we would edit it. This shows that we need to plan out our story properly, shot for shot and when and where we will film it- it will save time filming and ensure we have a story that ends on a cliff hanger and is understandable to the audience.
When thinking about our film we will also have to think about what editing tools we have access too. For example if we planned to involve a time change in the film we would have to think what editing tools we would need to make this obvious to the audience.
Trailer Analysis
Sound plays a large role in trailers. This is because sound lets you know the emotions that are trying to be portrayed. Trailers have both diegetic and non-Diegetic sound in them.
Diegetic sound is used often in the form of dialogue between characters and also in background sounds. This is so we get a sense of what is happening and so we get a feel of who the characters are. It also gives the audience hints to what the genre is. This also helps the audience to decide which characters they like and which characters they do not like. I have noticed that often the ambient sounds are kept in even when non-diegetic music is playing and this adds a lot to the authenticity of the action. In our practice piece we had assumed that we would remove all sound and add music, but I think this would actually give quite a 'flat' effect.
By adding key moments of dialogue from the film, it lets the audience know what the main plot of the film is and gives away key scenes and phrases in the film. An example of this is the trailer for “Ted” where he crashes his car and says “Sorry, I was sending a tweet”. This lets the audience know that the film is a comedy and that the bear is one of the main characters that we need to focus on throughout the film, also that there is an element of parody of social media. This is a lot of information to gain from one short line and we will need to make any dialogue we use work as hard.
Non-diegetic sound usually runs throughout the whole of the trailer. Trailers are normally very loud as when in the cinema and the trailers are being shown, people are still talking, still on their phone and still doing things to make sure they have all their beverages. This is why they are so loud, so the audience concentrates on the trailers. Non-diegetic sound is also used to give away emotions to the audience. An example of this is slow loud music, normally violins, when something scary is about to happen in a horror film. They do this to create suspense andto help the audience understand how to feel. Last year, we found a copyright free track to use under our opening sequence. This year, we need to create the music ourselves. We have already found three or four pieces of music and also some drum loops that we think we could edit together to make a good sounstrack for a suspenseful trailer. Exactly how we will do this will depend on the shots we have and their order.
Diegetic sound is used often in the form of dialogue between characters and also in background sounds. This is so we get a sense of what is happening and so we get a feel of who the characters are. It also gives the audience hints to what the genre is. This also helps the audience to decide which characters they like and which characters they do not like. I have noticed that often the ambient sounds are kept in even when non-diegetic music is playing and this adds a lot to the authenticity of the action. In our practice piece we had assumed that we would remove all sound and add music, but I think this would actually give quite a 'flat' effect.
By adding key moments of dialogue from the film, it lets the audience know what the main plot of the film is and gives away key scenes and phrases in the film. An example of this is the trailer for “Ted” where he crashes his car and says “Sorry, I was sending a tweet”. This lets the audience know that the film is a comedy and that the bear is one of the main characters that we need to focus on throughout the film, also that there is an element of parody of social media. This is a lot of information to gain from one short line and we will need to make any dialogue we use work as hard.
Non-diegetic sound usually runs throughout the whole of the trailer. Trailers are normally very loud as when in the cinema and the trailers are being shown, people are still talking, still on their phone and still doing things to make sure they have all their beverages. This is why they are so loud, so the audience concentrates on the trailers. Non-diegetic sound is also used to give away emotions to the audience. An example of this is slow loud music, normally violins, when something scary is about to happen in a horror film. They do this to create suspense andto help the audience understand how to feel. Last year, we found a copyright free track to use under our opening sequence. This year, we need to create the music ourselves. We have already found three or four pieces of music and also some drum loops that we think we could edit together to make a good sounstrack for a suspenseful trailer. Exactly how we will do this will depend on the shots we have and their order.
The trailer I made as a practice trailer went well considering the time allowed but also showed where a lot of the main difficulties will be. It made me realise how hard it is to make a good trailer and how hard I am going to have to work to make sure my trailer is a success. Before doing the practical, I had no clue that I would need to film so many different shots. You need so many shots as a trailer is full of quick cuts lasting 2-3 seconds each maximum.
It also opened my eyes to the different style of editing that has to be used. When making my movie opening, the editing was simple as we knew exactly what to do and how we were going to do it and just followed our storyboard. However, with the trailer the editing is a lot fiddlier as there is a lot more to do. The shots have to be shortened and the shots have to be one after another using quick cuts and the order is not so obvious - a lot can be changed by grouping the shots differently.
It also opened my eyes to the different style of editing that has to be used. When making my movie opening, the editing was simple as we knew exactly what to do and how we were going to do it and just followed our storyboard. However, with the trailer the editing is a lot fiddlier as there is a lot more to do. The shots have to be shortened and the shots have to be one after another using quick cuts and the order is not so obvious - a lot can be changed by grouping the shots differently.
Trailers are not filmed in the same way in which you would film a movie. Usually, trailers are composed of clips from key scenes from the full movie and then edited together. Our task is a little artificial in that we are filminf scenes specifically for a trailer rather than editing down scenes from a film. TInitially I assumed that the shots that are chosen to go into a trailer are key scenes in the film which give the audience clues to what the genre and story of the film is. Of course this is true, but I am also starting to realise that some shots are chosen just because they make a plot poit or emotion or relationship clear rather than because they are particularly exciting or dramatic. If we only film 'highlights' shots, I don't think our trailer will hang together. We need establishing style shots too, but these are not the same as the establishing shots at the beginning of a film scene as they establish big ideas, not just locations / time / setting etc.
Planning how to create a trailer from scratch was a lot harder than I thought it would be. This is how I know that I was going to have to spend a lot of time on this part of the production of the trailer. The trailer does not have to be in chronological order of the film, however it does still have to look good and make sense. The story board for the trailer will be most time consuming part of the planning process excluding having to think of a story and a plot. We will also have to think carefully about props, costumes, locations, actors etc as we are likely to film on more days than last year.
Oliver
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