Research and Planning - Teaser Trailer Ideas

I had an idea for a trailer the other night;
it starts with some footage or a shortened scene of the film, quite slow paced, possibly police cars driving past, or a scene containing a few characters from the film possibly just having a conversation, the conversation content will show the urban grittiness of the film. Also during these shots i would show some titles with a possible drum beat between shots to add tension and emphasis.

However, i would start the trailer with this with a slow paced song in the background to keep the consistency of the editing pace. Suddenly the screen will jerk and fade out, i would like to use the sound effect of a turntable scratching a vinyl record; then a fast paced song drops in, with a series of fast pace shots presenting the drama genre of the film. 

Towards the end of the trailer i would have the music pace slow down again, and the film title and a website for the film come up, also with facebook, twitter etc links at the bottom.

Research and Planning - Teaser poster research (print screen)

This screen shots shows the variety and similarities of film posters. They all have a colour scheme which they stick to throughout the poster. For example Toy Story 3 have an emphisis on the yellows and reds in the three, they continue the scheme through to the costumes of the characters.

In contrast, some posters do not contain a picture of any actors, and only have the title of the film and date of release. This makes them more mysterious as sometimes by presenting actors or using them as a promotion technique may give away certain elements of the film, for example Rhys Iffans from The Boat That Rocked could easily be related to comedy.

Research and Planning - location

this image represents the colour scheme of our trailer, showing quite a grimey urban presentation.

Research and Planning - cowboys and aliens teaser analysis

genre - hybrid (sci fi and western). This can be seen in the trailer thorough the use of mise en scene. The use of special effects represents the sci fi element to the film.

Narrative - this has been given away slightly by the title of the film, therefore the trailer needed to show even more giving it a slight twist. The basic plot is aliens invade in the western era and Daniel Craig has bee chosen to save the humans, with a futuristic contraption attached to his wrist.

USP - the two genres have never been mixed to therefore the hype about it will be high due to this fact.

Music - there is a drum beat at every shot change. Subtle use of music which slowly build ups then silence when the space ship flies over, this emphasises this occurrence and the music is used to build up tension to this point. There is an increase and decrease of volume of the music between dialogue ( increase no dialogue decrease dialogue )

Shot types / angles - wide variety of shots. e.g point of view shots, long shots and close ups. Camera angles are effectively used representing power.

Pace - each scene starts off slow then the pace gradually builds up. An example of this would be the first scene which starts of really slow with him examining himself, then as the other cowboys find him and it breaks into a fight scene.

Dialogue - there is a lot of dialogue in the trailer which explains the plot of the film without spoiling the whole film. For example one of the character has amnesia and this is mentioned by another character. There is also an emphasis on the heavy breathing.

Special Effects - The use of CGI has been shown through the alien space ship flying over the heads of the characters in one of the scenes. Another example would be the contraption attached to Daniel Craig's wrist.

Credits and Inter titles - the titles and credits come quite late in the trailer, however this may be due to the difficult story line, which is explained. The directors, producers, executive producers.

Research and Planning - Audience Profiling

The image shown gives represents the evidence that the highest percentage of people who go to the cinema are aged 15-24. This is who our film is aimed at, which means we must make it relatable on several different levels in order to attract each social aspect of the age group.

Research and Planning - Audience profiling

I believe the typical audience member for our media product would be anyone inbetween the age of 15-24 who likes getting involved with deep storylines which relate to an urban reality of a the diversity between lifestyles of teenagers.




This is Toby, he is 18 and is into graffiti art and bmxing he is most likely to shop at unique outlets such as 'Mash Clothing' in London, who support the youth of today and sell urban styled clothing brands, keeping up with what's new and fresh on the street. Toby is most likely to be found listening to the new form of drum and bass - dubstep, distinguished by it's two-step rhythm, fast beats and kicks are exactly what Toby lives for. Toby's favourite sort of TV programmes are going to be orientated around music such as; MTV and TMF channels, although he is likely to watch relating teenage series such as 'The Inbetweeners' and 'Skins'.



From this i am able to understand tobys likes and use them positively to help our film stand out to him. As Toby is keen on Music we could involve him and his social group with soundtracks to our film as did 'Adulthood' using Pathe institution when distributing their film they; used music as it has a huge influence on the target urban 16-24 year old audience. Their strategy was then to leverage this passion for music and tap in to the viral nature of social media to build credibility for the film, and generate early hype among a new 16-24 audience.



The film had to feel niche, real and about them so the challenge was to talk to them on their level by infiltrating their worlds to give the film credibility.

Research and Planning - Questionnaire Results (audience research)

We decided to put together a questionnaire to ask 15 of our family and friends who fall into our target audience age group of 15-24 to help identify anything we didn't already know about them and how we can tailor our teaser trailer to suit them best.

1. How often do you go to the cinema?



The graph above shows that males tend to attend cinema viewings more regularly then females, fortunately in our case our target audience is of the male gender allowing us to direct the film at the majority gender viewer.

2. How long do you prefer a teaser trailer to be?



In the above graph the prefered length of a teaser trailer is 2nd shortest and generally most popular at 20-30 seconds, therefore this is the time span we will try and aim for.

3. What location would you expect to find in an urban-drama?



The data from the above graph shows a correlation with sub-urban areas and the inner city rather than any outer field countryside locations, this was expectable considering all of the main urban-drama films out are shot in both or either one of these locations, however this helps the security of primary research from real peoples oppinions.

4. What appeals to you most in an urban-drama?



The results reveal that 'Sex Appeal' is the most appealing aspect of the urban-drama for both male and viewers, compared to crime, and character attitudes. Yet with more males than females taking part in the questionairre I am unable to make an accurate correlation between the genders.

Research and planning - Soundtrack

This song i think would be an ideal choice as it has a change in tempo half way through. This will add a sense of urgency to the trailer, which is something i want to emphasise.





This song also has a change in tempo. This song however differs from the other one above, as it has less vocals therefore allowing the more focus to be aimed at the teaser trailer.








This song is different from the other two above as it has vocals throughout. This song has more of an urban feel than the other two. Therefore creating a relevant mood for the trailer.

Research and Planning - Costume ideas.

Our film 'Sub-urban Nightmare' will be based around the suburbs of London, stereotypically the teenagers are fairly fashion conscious. In the particular area we are filming and basing are film in its certainly not at extremely affluent area however are wealthy enough to be able to afford up to date clothing. Here are some images of the kind of clothing our actors will wearing, fashionable yet not big designer branded clothing.

Black trainers, however when filming the trainers we will use will be scruffy to represent, the more lazy , un-groomed appearance.

Standard black jeans, nothing to stand out too much, jeans faded again to represent that's there not brand new, however they don't have holes or anything to shabby looking.

Finally, this hoodie represents the street life style of the individuals, and portray a urban teenager. As apposed to a upper class adolescent.

Research and Planning - Moodboard

Research and Planning - Urban drama moodbood

Above is a mood board created by various images relating to urban drama, one of the key genres we are keen to use as a topic for our 'Teaser Trailer'. I've picked out these pictures to help inspire our shots and story lines, the majority our fairly dark and grimy although some shots have vibrant colours to portray a contrast in lifestyles or a mixture of emotions.

The pictures at the top of the mood board I have chosen, reflects emotion of the characters and layout of the shots effectively majorly as mid-shots. The other images focus on settings and establishing shots to help set the scene allowing the audience to immediately identify the genre and story line of the movie, this is key when designing a teaser trailer.

Research and Planning - 4.3.2.1 trailer analysis

Similar genre and narrative of the film we intend to make a trailer for.



Genre - Action is suggested by the showing of weapons / Urban drama is connotated through the use of actors (Adam Deacon) and the director (Noel Clarke) from previous films such as Kiduthood etc.

Narrative - Unclear, just tries to tease audience with characters e.g Adam Deacon, Plan B, Bashy, Noel Clarke who directs the film as well.

USP - unclear narrative only shows highly known actors, which teases audience and leaves them wanting to know more. Good way of starting off viral marketing

Target Audience - young adults and teenagers. English and American, trying to target Americans through the use of American actors. The creators attract the target audience with the fast pace of the trailer, also using well known characters in the niche genre which will attract the viewers.

Music - ticking clock to represent countdown. Drums kick in matching the pace of the trailer.

Shot types / Camera Angles - High use of mid shots and close ups in order to show emotion e.g anger fear or shock in the case of this trailer. Uses a lot of camera panning, and the occasional use of hand-held camera, in order to create realism.

Pace - Fast paced one shot per second, counts through them.

Special Effects - none as the film is more to do with realism.

Dialogue - "you are about to die" connotates action film. "is that blood?" "Dont get it on the seats." this suggests that there is likely to be fighting and humour is made through this.

Credits and intertitles - counts down from 30 - 1 seconds. "Noel Clarke presents" this connotates a similar film to the popular kidulthood/adulthood. Coming soon which is a standard titlein many teaser trailers.

Research and Planning - Ideas for teaser trailer

GenreAs a group of (Myself, Tom and Max) we have decided to do a teaser trailer either from last years project of our opening two minutes or along the lines of last years project, with a genre decided of Urban drama.

Urban Drama - A type of drama that focuses on issues and problems caused by modern and contemporary urban life.

Issues - Drugs, Crime, Racism, Bullying, Friendships and Relationships
These are just a few of the issues we could expand on throughout our teaser trailer.

Narrative

Similar story line of a teenagers life and the obstacles of which they have to tackle and how they do it, with the positive and negative outcomes.

Unique Selling Point

Based on real story

Target Audience

Male and Female, 17-24. Young adults. They will then be able to reflect on realistic situations therefore be drawn to the film.

Music

Most likely fast paced to accompany a montage of activities.

Shot Types/Camera Angles

Mixture to illustrate camera skill and portray emotion of the situations and characters.

Editing/Pace

Fast heart beat style, montage of images.

Dialogue

Minimal, Odd shouting to illustrate emotion and give a hint of the narrative.

Voiceover

None/Minimal

Credits and intertitles

Summer 2011... Coming Soon..

Research and Planning - Genre mind map

Research and Planning - Buried teaser trailer analysis

Genre - thriller / horror

Narrative - some one is buried in a coffin. Calls the police and is hung up on, the call may have been intercepted. Sparks a lighter in order to find out where they are.

USP - No footage shown, just dialogue and music. This shows that the creators want to leave the rest t the imagination.

Target Audience - young to middle aged adults. Possibly couples. Slightly niche target audience. Screaming and sympathy attract the female audience to watch the film who would genrally go with their partners to watch the film.

Music - continuous  high pitched noise, regularly changing frequency. Rather unsettling.

Pace - Slow sound flow. Fade in and out of titles onto black screen.

Camera shots and angles - only shot is briefly of when the character lights his lighter, and a quick long shot is shown of him lying down in a coffin.

Dialogue - heavy breathing. Panicking man asking for help on his mobile, and is rejected by the police operator. Asynchronous sound, as there is no footage shown just a black screen.

Credits and Intertitles - Coming Soon, no specific date in order to keep the target audience interested and constantly looking for more trailers and information. The film title appear. and there is a constant animation on the bottom of the screen showing the website address as well as Facebook and Twitter etc.

I would expect that the film is quite a low budget in terms of Hollywood movies nowadays, therefore it will be easy for the makers to get a good return on the film, especially as its targeted at quite a small audience.

Research and Planning - Super 8 Trailer analysis

The trailer has no obvious target audience as not a lot is shown. However, as the names Steven Speilberg and JJ Abrams are mentioned this suggests that the audince being targeted is a worldwide audience trying to target as many people as possible. Depending on the rating of the film this will change the size of the target audience. Nevertheless the rating or plot to the film have not yet been released, therefore no specific audience can be selected.

This type of trailer is a good example viral marketing. It will start off word of mouth creating hype about a film which hasn't even been completed yet.

The trailer starts with the sound of crickets. This is quite an unsettling sound as it is like a croaking.

A black screen with the text "in 1979 the US Air Force closed a section of Area 51". This immediately connotes that aliens etc may be involved.

Then the unsettling sound of a train crossing gate. With flashing red lights. The colour red connotes danger or death.

Then you see a train carrying lots of cargo loads.

Cut to a car driving down the road that jumps up on the tracks and heads straight toward the train. This identifies either a planned attack on the train or a coincidence that someone wanted to kill themselves in front of this particular train.

Cut to black screen and then the words “From Director J.J. Abrams”, this allows anyone familiar to J.J. Abrams and the other films he has directed to relate and illustrate a suitable genre.

Back to the train and car colliding into each other, the train derails, the camera slowly zooms in on one of the tipped over cargo carts of the derailed train, then something is punching on the walls inside the train cart trying to escape, this allows the audiences imagination to go wild, wondering what is inside, drawing in the audience to the film, wanting to know more. 

The use of special effects in this clip of the trailer represents the funding put into the film. Then it cuts to black screen and then the title ”Super 8“flashes. "Next Summer. It Arrives.... Super 8"

Sources have identified near the end of the trailer, a super 8 camera lens can be seen. Inside the lens, several letters can be seen moving past in a movie reel fashion. By analyzing each frame, the letters S C A R I E S T T H I N G I E V E R S A W can be seen

Research and Planning - Analysis of teaser trailer 2012

Genre - sci-fi adventure / disaster movie.
Narrative - flooding of the world in the year 2012. Un-relateable.
USP - Environmental disaster on a global scale, as opposed to previous films e.g the day after tomorrow. Sense of enigma. Close to the present day.
Target Audience - Male?? possibly late teens and young - middle aged adults.
Music - buzzing of bees ( environmental issue), likeness to a ticking clock, music is mysterious raising tension.
Shot Types / camera angles - close up of faces to emphasise emotions, extreme long shots when showing mountain and wave. Shot of feet represents sense of urgency.
Pace of editing - slow editing building tension, unusual for a teaser trailer.
Special Effects - giant wave good use.
Credits and intertitles - end of the world , hints everyone will die but doesnt mention it directly, shows the website for unaswered questions.

Research and Planning - Shot list of teaser trailer for Brother 2 Another.

• titles " next summer"
• close up shot of Dave's face when he/me turns his head watching max.
• long shot of group of youths
• mid shot of someone looking up breathing out smoke....
• establishing shot of a rave
• mid shot of people dancing
• titles directed by .....
• long shot of police car driving past camera movement
• panning following the car.
• titles produced by...
• close up of character with bruised face out of breathe
• titles from the director of .... (previous films)
• low angle POV shot of someone being punched
• titles from the makers of ....
• Close up of a characters face battered and brusied with blunt look on there face.
• close up shot on gun being pointed
• black screen sound of gun
• titles film name
• titles website..

Link to year 12 blog - G321

http://racingtycoon12992.blogspot.com/