Research - Introduction To Existing Trailers

If I am to complete my film trailer to a high, professional standard then it is essential that I research the existing trailers out there. By researching a wide range of genres and even sub-genres, I will have a strong and confident idea about what is expected from my product due to the genre conventions that I will see. This research will further and deepen my knowledge on trailers and allow me to conform to the conventions of the product as well as being able to make it as realistic as possible. Within my following blog posts I shall be analysing each film trailer in depth, balancing the numbers I do of each genre to give me an accurate idea for when I make my final decision.

In each trailer I will be analysing the important groups which are,

• Sound
• Editing
• Mise-en-scene
• Camera movements 
• Camera shots and angles

What is a film trailer?

                                               What is a film trailer?

'A trailer or preview is an advertisement or a commercial for a feature film that will be exhibited in the future at a cinema'   - Web definition. 

                                  The history behind them...

The name 'trailer' was derived from the fact that the sequence was usually shown after the film had been exhibited. This was problematic as the audience tended to leave the theatre as soon as the film was over because they had already seen the scenes that would be included in the trailer. Therefore, this did not last long. 

                                 Where trailers are seen...

Trailers became an extremely popular idea once marketers realised that it would create audience anticipation for the film and therefore give a build up to the release date. Essentially, the trailers are an extremely successful was to publicise a film. 

Trailers are also used for TV programmes of all different sorts and along with film trailers are aired on television at various times in the day. The time, the channel it is shown on  and the content of the trailer will depend on the genre and age rating of the film For example, a horror film trailer will not be shown on daytime television as younger audience are more likely to see it which is why they are shown later at night and make no appearance on children's television channels.

There are a variety of ways in which trailers are shown, the main one being on television although they are also shown at cinemas before a film is screened - this is a prime time and excellent opportunity to get an audience thinking about going to see that film after seeing the one they are about to watch.


Furthermore, they can be used on online websites such as YouTube where viewers can search the film and watch it or they may come across it as an advertisement before the video they have selected starts. They also make an appearance on regular websites that could have nothing to do with film at all.

                                      What is included within a trailer?...

Trailers contain scenes and short snippets from the film to give people a 'taster' of what the film is about. The aim of the trailer, apart from trying to attain publicity, is to attract their target audience by airing clips of the film that represent its genre to best without giving away the entire film.

Aside from the actual footage which is included in the film trailers, there is also a substantial amount of text. This text includes the title of the film, the name of actors if they are well known or are popular at that period of time, the date/month/season in which it is going to be released. Another set of text that tends to appear at the end of a trailer, usually in small writing below the title is the name of the production and distribution company. This small print usually contains information that is not important for the audience to see yet needs to be shown at some point for legal reasons.

                                              

                                                                          

Different Genres of Film

There are a variety of different genres that I can choose for my brief. This presentation has given me an overview on the different sorts of genres that I can do for my trailer. I definitely feel as though this has helped me immensely as I now know what is involved in each genre and have a good knowledge on the different sub-genres that I can also achieve. The next stage of my research that I find it critical that I complete, is looking more closely at existing film trailers that are on the market. I will be able to do some textual analysis and have a deeper understanding on what I will be expected to conform to within my own trailer. It will also give me an idea of what sort of things I should be thinking about including within my film trailer as I want to make it as realistic and professional as possible.

Research Action Plan for Fri 26th - Mon 29th

I have devised an extra action plan for myself where I have set myself deadlines that I need to meet by the end of next week.  By setting this more specific plan it will allow me to complete the exact posts that I want myself to do as soon as possible. 


I found an online calendar tool which let me choose a specific date and then insert what task I wanted to complete that day.

Different Shot Types/Angles

I took these screen grabs from a film to demonstrate the variety of shot types and angles which I can use in both my video production and also my two ancillary products.

Technologies & Software - Part 1

Final Cut Express 

Snapshot of Final Cut Express 

Final Cut Express offers functionality and a range of features which will enable me to to edit my work using a variety of transitions and effects. I won't be limited by the the things I need to contain in my video production as FCE offers these all to me. This is advantagous for me as I know that I can make my trailer how I want it and will not have to compromise on anything that I am wanting to achieve. 


The DSLR 

DSLRs are multi-functional and can be used for photography and filming. From research and personal opinion, there are many benefits of shooting with a DSLR (digital single lens reflex) some of these include faster shutter speed and autofocus. They have a high responsiveness rate so you don’t miss out on a good shot. There are also more imaging options to chose from. They are extremely versatile meaning I can also take pictures or shoot scenes of whatever I want because the DSLR will never limit me.While some DSLRs are high up on the price scale, ones that are lower down can still perform to an excellent standard, especially is the user is a beginner. It’s a great starting point for amateur photographers and film makers while still producing high quality images and videos. Another good thing about the DSLRs is the different lenses. The lens adds depth and with the use of different lenses, one can ‘effects’ to their work. They can also produce high quality shots in low light. They can capture shots even when there is not a lot of ambient light – and you don’t even have to turn the flash on unlike you do with less professional, compact cameras.Furthermore, you have complete control over the camera yourself. You don’t have to worry about the camera changing settings e.c.t when you want a specific shot, it’s flexible to suit your needs which a great as you can shoot the exact shot the way you want it.

Webiste used for some of this information: http://www.digital-slr-guide.com/advantage-of-digital-slr-cameras.html accessed on 15/09/14

Research and Planning Action Plan

By laying out the things I need to plan for my main video task and also my two ancillary products, it will allow me to keep track of the specific things I need to plan and research. Overall, this method of planning my posts will allow me to keep control over my time management ensuring that I keep track of crucial information that I need to be working on to help my blog flow efficiently. I have given myself a priority action plan also which I have noted down on paper which has allowed me to set deadlines for my most important posts.

Choosing the brief

Reflection: Evaluation of preliminary task

Reflecting back on my preliminary task and pointing out what I thought were my strengths and weaknesses, will help me outline things that I need to address by the time it comes to producing my actual coursework. 

Evaluation

1. I believe that overall me and my group did follow the brief as our idea was to represent several different stereotypes within British culture, the ones we used are typically found in schools. Our film did represent each stereotype we showed and upon viewing the feedback showed that people understood which stereotypes we were trying to show. One of the things we lacked was footage as we didn't plan the length of time each scene would be on which resulted in our video being very short. 

2. Our final preliminary video was, in my opinion, was effective. We managed to get across the moral of our story which followed the brief. As I stated before, we could have been more organised, resulting in more footage meaning that the video had a longer time to show the brief and therefore the audience would be able to see what we were trying to do.

3. We used a range of technologies which included both software and hardware. To film we used a DSLR camera along with other equipment to help film our footage such as a tripod. We were fairly limited as we were only given a short time to film and therefore I feel we would have used more equipment if we had developed our ideas further. We then used software such as Final Cut to edit our video together. Within this we added transitions and effects we gave us the opportunity to add a certain professional aspect to some scenes. Also, both the equipment and software I used gave me a basic knowledge onto how to edit videos, a foundation which I will be able to build on through further use with my work.

4. I have learnt a lot of skills which I will be able to build upon with further use. The small time that I used final cut for allowed me to get first hand experience with it and therefore I feel confident to use it again which will give me a good basis when it comes to editing my video. 

Preliminary Task

FinalA2Prelim from emily smith on Vimeo.

Here is my groups preliminary task which we completed at the beginning of July.