Analysis of Teaser Trailers...

Thriller...

This is the teaser trailer for 'Shutter Island'. There is no story line revealed in the trailer but the audience discover that the main character visits Shutter Island which is full of violent offenders who have murdered people. There is screechy, eery music in the background and there are lots of images shown very quickly.

 

This is the teaser trailer for 'One Hour Photo'. Unlike the other trailers, this one lets the audience know what the storyline is but without giving away any climaxes that will appear in the film. The music begins when the family is shown and appears to be calm and fairly normal. One the little boy starts talking about the main character 'Sy' the music becomes a lot more sinister and the audience realises that he is not a "good" character. The pace of the trailer starts to increase with the music getting faster and the clips are shown quicker and more vigorously.

 

This is the teaser trailer for 'Hide and Seek'. The story line appears to be very normal to begin with and the music is light, which suggests that the film is family friendly. The audience is made aware that this is a thriller when 'Emily' tells her father about her imaginary friend. Strange events occur and Emily blaims all of them on "Charlie". The pace increases and the music becomes more tense, leaving the audience at the edge of their seats.

 

This is the teaer trailer for 'Taken'. This trailer is done well as it remains a fairly fast paced all throughout but the audience still knows that the film is about the main character looking for his daughter who was taken from him. No details are shown but it is very clear that it is a thriller due to the violence, language and speed of the trailer.

Analysis of Teaser Trailers...

Horror...

This is the teaser trailer for 'The Amityville Horror'. It starts off very tense and atmospheric by long moments of silence, then shows images of an event that had happened in the past. It keeps the audience on their toes and text reveals that it is based on the true story, which draws attention even further. The teaser increases its pace, the music gets faster and louder and flashing images are shown.

This is the teaser trailer for 'The Forth Kind'. This film is also based on true events, but in this trailer the acctress is directly addressing the audience, which makes it seem more convincing. The pace is slow to begin with and the main character discovers that their is a link between all of her patients. The pace then increases and the screen is split in two, showing the audience two images, one of raw footage and the other is the film reenactment.

This is the teaser trailer for 'The Ring'. The colours used are very dark and dull which corresponds with the genre and mood of the film. There is both sound and images shown but they do not match which I like because it is something different and makes the trailer more tense.

Possible Film Genres...

Codes and Conventions of a Teaser Trailer...

• Usually lasts between a half a minute and a minute
• They are typically released 18 months before the actual release of the film
• They are made whilst the film is still in the production stage
• Teaser trailers tend to be reserved for big budgeted films
• Gives a brief insight to what the film is about without revealing the whole story line
• Often scenes not in the film are shown in the teaser because the film has not yet been edited 
• Few or sometimes no scenes are actually shown in the teaser trailer
• At the beginning there is usually an establishing shot to set the scene
• At the beginning the logo for the film studio is shown
• They often have a voice over and/or text to give the audience extra information 
• Characters are identified and the audience is informed of the actor playing them
• Music is used throughout to set the mood, this can help the audience to establish the genre of the film
• Usually the pace is heightened throughout and the tempo of the music rises
• The title of the film and the expected release date is shown at the end

What Is A Teaser Trailer?

Teaser trailers are essentially shortened versions of film trailers, usually lasting between 30 seconds to a minute. 

They are usually released well before the theatrical trailer, sometimes even 18 months before the release of the film.

They are usually released online, in cinemas and on the television.

The teasers are often released when the film is in production and so does not show many scenes from the actual film, sometimes it does not show any footage from the film.

The main purpose of the teaser trailer is to entice the audience and draw in their curiosity so that they will be interested in seeing the film.

They are usually reserved for big budget films because they have the money and authority to do so. If the film company feels that their film will be a success, a teaser trailer is a very useful tool as it raises the profile of its release and gets its audience anticipating the release.