The Purpose of Film Trailers

Film trailers are film advertisements directed at the audience. They usually consist of selected shots from the featured film and are usually taken from the funniest or most exciting parts of the film depending on the genre but which are cut shorter so that the audience isn't seeing all of the best bits of the film in the trailer. Trailers are usually about 2 and a half minutes long and can be shown in cinemas, on the television and now on the Internet.
The purposes of film trailers are;

• To create interest in the film
• Inform the audience of the film i.e. the genre, the date of release and the production studio
• To persuade the audience that the film is worth seeing
• To ‘show off’ some of the main actors and stars in the film
• To ‘tease’ the audience by creating excitement and intrigue with the use of conventions such as narrative enigmas
• To showcase some of the best features in the film

The first real trailer was that of The Great Train Robbery in 1903 directed by Edwin S Porter. The film was a silent movie and the trailer was of a cowboy in a close-up shot pointing and cocking a gun at the camera.
Until the end of the 1950's, the National Screen Service created most of the film trailers released. These trailers comprised of various key scenes from the films, a musical score from the film and text describing the story or a voice over (stentorian voice).
In the 1960's trailers began to change into textless, montages of the film and quick-editing became a popular convention of trailers.
Stanley Kubrick used quick-editing for the trailer of his 1962 film 'Lolita'. The quick montage of various scenes of his film creates an excitement as the narrative enigma is made out of words spoken by different characters at different times throughout the film creating a voice or sound montage. Photography and different motifs are used in the fast-paced trailer making it seem original and unique from the trailers before it.





The trailer for John Huston's 1964 film 'The Night of the Iguana' independently created and distributed by Andrew J Kuehn was a fast-paced, montage of various scenes with the characters telling the story from the scenes mainly by the character played by Richard Burton differed from that of Kubrick's film trailer and began the trailers taking the form of what they are now. The upbeat and quick non-diegetic music sets the story up as a fast-action drama/thriller set in a tropical location.
In 1968, Kuehn opened the office of Kaleidoscope Films which directors like Spielberg, began to use to create trailers for their upcoming films. Kaleidoscope Films became a major player in the trailer industry for the nearly four decades after it's initial creation.

Usual conventions of a modern day film trailer are;

• Reflective of genre
• Graphic captions - director's name, date of release, text related to the film
• Non-diegetic music - this can help reflect the genre
• Production company logo i.e. 20th Century Fox or Paramount
• Narrative enigma - this can help set the film up
• Editing - Quick or slow depending on the genre to create tension, excitement or mood
• Close ups - This will show off the stars in the movie.

Trailers usually contain five things;

1. Plot Summary
2. Voice-over
3. Music
4. Cast, Crew and Studio Information
5. Technical elements; Sound mix and video resolution

1. Plot Summary: Trailers usually have a structure of three acts; a beginning which lays out the characters and premise. A middle which furthers the story and usually ends in a dramatic climax. And the last contains a strong piece of signature music from the film and may also contain a cast run in a visual montage.

2. Voiceover: Narration that reinforces the plot made by the images of the trailer and helps the audience understand the montage of clips that are condensed into the 1.30 - 2.30 minute trailer.

3. Music: Music helps enforce the mood and tone of the trailer. The music can be part of the film score or simply music chosen to suggest a mood or tone.

4. Cast, Crew and Studio Information: Most trailers consist of a cast run and a billing block. The cast run shows the actors of the film that are the main and supporting characters. If the directer or producer is well-known they will usually feature too. A billing block is the list of the cast and crew usually shown at the end of the trailer, on posters and advertisements.

5. Technical Elements: Usually the trailer will contain a sound mix consisting of different sound effects and music that is enhanced stereophonic sound to make it the focus point. Video resolution usually has a high bandwidth when distributed through Internet connections and allow a 1080p resolution at the most.

Trailer Analysis using the five conventions usually found in trailers;

1. Plot Summary

This trailer shows the idea of a beginning, middle and end. The first 1.04 minutes sets up the main charater (Sam) and the car that is part of the cause of the adventure he is thrown into. It also shows the audience meteors that are actual robots falling to the earth and acting as a catalyst to the events once we see the first 'Transformer' robot. From 1.04 to 1.46 minutes we see action and fight sequences intended to excite the audience. The dramatic climax of the middle is the introduction of the love interest and the main Transformer. From 1.46 to the end music significant to the film (a music score) is played over more battle scenes in the form of a visual montage.

2. Voiceover

There is no official voiceover in this, however the characters dialogue is used as well as text captions.

3. Music

In the beginning of the trailer the introduction of the song 'What I've Done' by Linkin Park is playing. This creates tension and shows the audience something big is about to happen.

In the middle, quieter music - probably a score from the film - is played with dialogue from the characters to create a build-up.

A faster and more dramatic score is played at the end of the trailer to create a dramatic climax and create excitement for the audience so they will be enticed to see the film.

4. Cast, Crew and Studio Information

The studio information is displayed at the beginning of the trailer like most other trailers. The Billing Block at the end just after the film's logo/name.

5. Technical Elements

Sound mix: The sound effects are used throughout the trailer; the robots transforming, the explosions and dialogue. This creates more action and dramatic effect as it adds to the visual elements of the effects.

Institutions:

The institution is responsible for the production, distribution, and marketing of the film.
The main companies at the moment are;

• Fox Entertainment Group
• Paramount Motion Pictures Group
• Dreamworks SKG
• Sony Pictures Entertainment
• MGM Holdings Inc.
• NBC Universal
• Time Warner
• Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group
• Lions Gate Entertainment
• The Weinstein Company

These companies also have numerous subsidaries that run under different names but are still part of the parent company.

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Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_film_production_companies